Multiple bomb threats affected flights in Europe on November 6, after a series of hoaxes disrupted air traffic across the continent on November 3 and November 5.
So far, the cause of the ongoing chaos is unknown -- with the only lead being an email claiming responsibility signed by “Fighters of the Male State,” apparently linking it to a shadowy Russian group dubbed both Male State and Male Legion.
The group itself does not appear to have been very active in recent years. RFE/RL has reported extensively on its activities in the past, most recently in 2022 when it targeted a bar in Tbilisi that was frequented by anti-Kremlin Russians.
It was founded in 2016 by Vladislav Pozdnyakov, a fitness coach, who fled Russia two years later after receiving a suspended sentence on charges of "inciting hatred toward women."
The reported link to the airline threats has not been confirmed -- and denials have been made. The BBC cited a Telegram channel linked to it, while Reuters cited Pozdnyakov himself, with both saying the group no longer existed and was not involved.
Male State, which was banned in Russia in 2021, was noted for extreme right-wing views, racism, misogyny, and anti-LGBT statements. Members had even celebrated Adolf Hitler’s birthday.
The movement first came to notice when it began campaigning against the introduction in Russia of a law on domestic violence.
A feminist activist told RFE/RL at the time that she had been targeted with insults and death threats, and that others had had their addresses published online.
Male State also gained notoriety for targeting women in relationships with black men, and was reportedly involved in targeting a sushi chain that used a black man in an advert.
A Faked Death In Indonesia
Pozdnyakov’s current whereabouts are unknown. His Telegram channel, which has some 5,400 subscribers, is still running and is a platform that promotes Russia’s war on Ukraine.
There was no immediate comment on the channel on the reported email relating to the airline threats. On November 6, it posted on subjects including a Russian regional court banning a pornographic video featuring Muslim women, the US midterm elections, and pay rises for Russian soldiers.
Pozdnyakov made news again in October last year by faking his own death in Indonesia. There was even a pixelated photo of a man with similar physical appearance, lying on the ground with his shirt covered in blood. Two days later, Pozdnyakov reappeared and admitted that it was a publicity stunt.
Russian authorities have often aggressively pursued political exiles but do not appear to have gone after Pozdnyakov. This has fed speculation, fueled by Pozdnyakov himself, that he might have ties to Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB). Some Russian rights activists have also suggested that Pozdnyakov began cooperating with the FSB after his arrest.
'Hybrid Aggression'
Officials in European countries affected by the bomb threats have not voiced any direct suspicions about who is behind them but have indicated that they appear to be coordinated.
"The most reasonable assumption is that we are facing an attempt at hybrid aggression and a form of psychological warfare," Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares said.
The threats come amid increasing warnings from Western officials about a Russian shadow campaign of drone incursions, sabotage, and assassination attempts in European NATO countries.
This week has also seen a series of cyberattacks on supermarket freezers across Europe.
“The refrigeration attacks and airline bomb threats may ultimately prove unrelated to Russia -- or to one another. Both nevertheless demonstrate how relatively modest actions can disrupt ordinary life, impose economic costs, and test public confidence in essential services,” wrote David Cattler, former NATO Assistant Secretary General for Intelligence and Security, on November 5.
“Europe cannot wait for Russian fingerprints before protecting the systems its citizens depend on,” he added.
The Kremlin has dismissed any suggestion of Russian involvement in the freezer attacks.
"These are absurd claims. As always, they are backed up by absolutely no reasoning, no evidence whatsoever, and yet here we have such baseless accusations against our country, implicating it in everything," spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on November 5.
There was no immediate comment on the airline threats.
