Irish Police Declare Bomb Threats Against Media Outlets Hoaxes After Nationwide Evacuations

Irish police have determined that a series of bomb threats that forced the evacuation of multiple major media organizations across Dublin on Friday were hoaxes, allowing staff to return to their buildings hours after the security alerts triggered widespread disruption.

The alerts began shortly after 9:30 a.m. when Ireland’s national broadcaster RTÉ received an email warning that a bomb would detonate on its Donnybrook campus within 45 minutes.

The entire complex, including an on-site crèche, was evacuated as armed Gardaí and sniffer dogs searched the buildings.

Staff at Bauer Media’s Marconi House, which houses Newstalk and Today FM, along with the offices of the Irish Independent and Virgin Media, were also ordered to leave their buildings following similar threats. Sky’s Dublin office also received a security threat later in the morning.

RTÉ Radio 1 was forced off its scheduled programming, replacing the “Today with David McCullagh” show with pre-recorded music while the presenter broadcast from the station’s mobile vehicle outside the building.

Newstalk presenter Claire Byrne told listeners upon returning to air that the threat her station received had been judged fake. “We were advised that we could return to the building and that that warning was a hoax,” she said.

Bauer Media confirmed in a statement that its offices were evacuated after receiving a hoax bomb threat, adding that “everyone is safe and we are back on air as normal”.

Tánaiste Simon Harris said authorities were taking the situation “very seriously” but acknowledged the uncertainty surrounding the source. “We don’t yet know who is responsible for what’s happening this morning,” he told Cork 96FM.

Taoiseach Micheál Martin described the situation as “worrying” and linked it to a broader wave of disruption targeting European aviation in recent days.

“It just illustrates how relatively simple it can be to cause disruption and to undermine the normal operation of society through unconventional activities of this kind, which are designed to cause disruption, designed to cause fear and anxiety,” he said.

The Irish government issued a statement saying the threats appeared to be part of a “coordinated campaign of disruption” following similar hoaxes against flights across Europe on Thursday.

The Irish Independent published the email it received, which was signed by a figure calling himself Mikhail Andropov and claimed to represent the group behind the aviation threats. The message warned of a “new wave of attacks” and stated an explosive device would detonate in 45 minutes.

Seamus Dooley, secretary of the National Union of Journalists, condemned the threats as an assault on press freedom.

“This is an attempted attack on press freedom. This is an attack on democracy and is intended as such and it must not succeed,” he said.

The threats came just days before Dublin is scheduled to host a major European Union summit, with around 55 heads of state and government expected to attend.

Irish authorities said an unprecedented security operation would be in place for the gathering.