ROME: Diplomatic missions in Rome were hit by a coordinated assault of parcel bombs on Thursday , officials and news agencies reported, seriously injuring at least two persons and injecting Europe with a new atmosphere of anxiety about possible terrorist plots ahead of the Christmas holiday . Police were conducting checks at all embassies in the Italian capital.
Meanwhile, Swiss police said a suspect package had been sent to the EU embassy in Berne.
The first attack, in Rome a parcel bomb at the Swiss embassy, exploded at midday. Shortly after, a second parcel bomb exploded at the Chilean embassy, wounding an employee. A suspicious package was reported at the Ukrainian embassy in Rome but the mission later said no dangerous items had been found after an inspection. It was not immediately clear who had sent the packages or why the embassies had been chosen as targets. The Swiss embassy said that no one had claimed responsibility for the bomb there.
The attacks rattled a city already on edge after violent student protests last week and ongoing security alerts across Europe this month. The Swiss embassy said in a statement that a package containing a hidden explosive device detonated around noon when an embassy employee opened it, causing injuries to both of his hands. Those injuries appeared serious, said a spokesman for the Carabinieri, Italy's paramilitary police. The employee, a 53-yearold Swiss national, was taken to a local hospital.
Similarly, a package exploded at the Chilean embassies when an employee opened it injuring an administrative official. An investigation has begun.
Read more: Mail bombs target missions in Rome - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/europe/Mail-bombs-target-missions-in-Rome-/articleshow/7154637.cms#ixzz18zzBnHM6
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