Breaking news: Bomb Found On Underground Train In Rome

[EnglishLady]

Sky News Dec 21

An explosive device has been found on an underground train in Rome and experts are investigating whether it was an attempted Christmas season terror attack

It is thought the parcel bomb was found inside an empty carriage during a stop in Rebibbia, on the outskirts of the city.

The area has been cleared and bomb disposal experts are apparently defusing the device.

Reports have said it was left in a grocery bag underneath a seat, and was spotted by the conductor after passengers got off at the train's last stop this morning.

Officials said the bomb was composed of gunpowder and metal tubes and was hidden inside a shoe box.

Police have said it could not have blown up because it did not contain a detonator but Rome's Mayor Gianni Alemanno said the discovery was "worrying".

Spokesman for the city council Giampaolo Polizzaro contradicted what the police said and told a news agency: "It was ready to explode.

"It seems it could have been activated by remote control because it had something that looked like an antenna."

There have been growing concerns in Europe about holiday season attacks following a suicide bombing in Sweden and official fears of an assault on a European city modelled on the deadly shooting spree in Mumbai, India.

On Monday, 12 men were arrested as part of terror raids in London, Stoke, Birmingham and Cardiff.

Rebibbia station was not evacuated and the metro system continued to function normally while investigations were carried out.

Security measures have been stepped up in Rome following violent anti-government protests last week and ahead of expected rallies on Wednesday.

 

[EnglishLady]

BBC News Dec 23

Two injured in parcel blasts at embassies in Rome


Italian police have been searching embassies and consular offices in Rome after parcel bombs exploded at the Swiss and Chilean missions.

A Swiss member of staff at the Swiss embassy received serious hand injuries while one person was slightly hurt at the Chilean embassy.

Both had been opening packages when they exploded.

Italian police are investigating a possible anarchist link to the blasts, Interior Minister Roberto Maroni said.

A suspect package was also reported at the Ukrainian embassy but no dangerous items were found, the embassy told Reuters news agency.

Parcel bombs were sent to embassies in the Greek capital Athens last month but there was no immediate suggestion of a link.

'Wave of terrorism'
A spokeswoman for the Swiss embassy said the explosion there had occurred around midday (1100 GMT).

The embassy is located on via Barnaba Oriani near Villa Glori Park, to the north of the city centre.

The person hurt at the Chilean embassy did not suffer serious injuries.

That embassy is located on the via Po near the Villa Borghese in central Rome.

The Mayor of Rome, Gianni Alemanno, said: "It's a wave of terrorism against embassies, something much more worrisome than a single attack."

The Italian authorities were following an "international path" in their investigations, he added.

According to the centre-right Italian daily Corriere della Sera, initial police investigations at the Swiss embassy were "targeting anarchistic circles of eco-terrorist extraction".

"Detectives are assessing various hypotheses, including that of an attack planned by anarchist-insurrectionist movements connected with the jailing of several anarchist exponents currently held in Swiss prisons," the paper said.

A suspected bomb was found on an empty underground train in Rome on Tuesday. The device lacked a detonator and tests showed it contained no explosive.

Anti-government protests have gripped Italy over the past week, with Rome the scene of some of the most serious rioting