Broadcasters Sky, Ireland's RTÉ receive bomb threats, as security alerts sweep Europe

The bomb threat emailed to RTÉ claimed to be from the same group that has been behind a wave of bomb threats issued to passenger flights around Europe this week, the Irish outlet reported.

British broadcaster Sky said on Friday it had received a security threat, hours after Irish broadcaster RTÉ evacuated its building following a bomb threat, and as a wave of bomb threats has affected European flights this week.

"Sky was one of a number of media organizations that received a security threat," the broadcaster, which is owned by Comcast, said in a statement read by a presenter on Sky News.

"We have carried out a security assessment and reported the matter to the relevant authorities. The safety and security of our colleagues is our primary concern, and we are working closely with authorities to ensure our people and operations remain secure. It would not be appropriate to comment further at this time," the statement read.

Irish media offices evacuated due to bomb threat

A presenter from one of the impacted Irish radio stations, Newstalk, said the earlier bomb threat had been deemed a hoax.

Newstalk resumed programming at 1000 GMT after staff were told they could return to the building in central Dublin, presenter Claire Byrne said on air. The Irish Independent newspaper group reported that its offices in the capital had also been evacuated.

A reporter for RTÉ Radio said after news programming went back on air from an outside broadcasting unit that a threat was sent to the broadcaster by email shortly before 0900 GMT that a bomb was going to go off within 45 minutes.

The presenter of RTÉ Radio One's mid-morning news show said he understood that the email was purported to be from the same people behind hoax bomb threats that disrupted dozens of passenger flights across Europe on Thursday.

"It is worrying, and we take the threat seriously," Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin said in a telephone interview with RTÉ shortly after the more than one-hour interruption to its programming ended.

"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. We have to remain calm and very focused on this."

RTÉ's campus in south Dublin remained closed while police checked it building by building, the reporter said.

Bomb threat that affected RTÉ from same group targeting airports across Europe

A bomb threat emailed to the Irish broadcaster claimed to be from the same group that has been behind a wave of bomb threats issued to passenger flights around Europe this week, an RTÉ reporter said on air, reading excerpts from the email.

The excerpts read on air did not name the group. Sky has not clarified whether the bomb threat it received was related to the airport threats.