The responsibility for a molotov attack launched against the US Consulate General in Florence, Italy, has been claimed by a group saying to be “with” Hamas.
Two incendiary bottles were thrown at the consulate in the Italian city during the night between January 31 and February 1.
The molotov cocktails are believed to have been thrown from a side street and didn’t reach the building, exploding instead on the road without causing any damage, according to Italian news agency ANSA.
Hours later, as authorities were still investigating the incident, a number of Italian news outlets received a message linking to a Telegram channel called “The whole world is Hamas”.
The first-ever message published on the channel was a nearly two-minute video in which the group claimed responsibility for the incident and laid out its concerning plans.
The clip, which was handed to Italian investigators, portrayed a distorted voice speaking in Arabic. The video also included Italian subtitles.
The video showed images of the US Consulate in Florence followed by news cuttings reporting the molotov cocktails launch.
A person, whose face is rendered unrecognisable as is both covered with fabric and pixellated, then appeared on screen and addressed the Italian and Israeli governments, the European Union and “all the Zionist governments in Europe and around the world” to warn that for “each Palestinian civilian killed a new Hamas fighter in the world is being created”.
A written message accompanying the video on Telegram added the molotov attack against the US Consulate was the first of a series they had planned.
The group claimed to have a total of “50 zionist targets in Italy” they are planning to hit unless their demands for a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of Palestinians from Israeli prisons are met.
In a Telegram post shared on February 2, the group stressed it “isn’t Hamas” but it is “with” Hamas.
It also added that, despite the operations it has planned have been given the “symbolic” name of “death to Zionists”, they aren’t planning to kill or injure people as their “primary objective”.
Filippo Spiezia, Florence public prosecutor, said his office “isn’t underestimating” the incident. Mr Spiezia went on to say he informed the European Union Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation (Eurojust), before adding: “It’s a situation to read bearing in mind the whole international scenario”.
Following the October 7 terror attack launched by Hamas on Israel and the airstrikes on Gaza that have since followed, the Italian government sided with Tel Aviv.
However, in an interview with Italian daily Il Messaggero, Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani added Italy isn’t “against Palestine or Palestinians” and still backs a two-state solution.
