FAI Cell Claims Parcel Bomb Sent to Leonardo SpA Defense Chief Executive in Rome
Source: nowarbutmywar
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
An anarchist cell affiliated with the Informal Anarchist Federation (FAI) claimed responsibility on July 15 for a parcel bomb mailed June 27 to Alessandro Profumo, chief executive officer of Leonardo SpA, Italy's state-owned defense manufacturer and a major NATO supply chain partner.
ANALYSIS
The device was mailed to Profumo at Leonardo SpA's offices in Rome and arrived June 27. The FAI cell's communique, published July 15, described Profumo as a war profiteer and identified Leonardo SpA as a target because of its role in weapons manufacturing and defense contracting. Leonardo SpA is Italy's largest defense contractor and one of NATO's primary equipment suppliers; its portfolio includes military helicopters, maritime patrol aircraft, fire-control radar for the Eurofighter Typhoon, and avionics components for the F-35 program. Through its wholly owned subsidiary Leonardo DRS, the company operates directly in the United States, supplying targeting systems, electronics, and military communications equipment to US military services.
The FAI, a decentralized Italian-origin insurrectionary anarchist network, was designated a foreign terrorist organization (FTO) by the US State Department in November 2025. The designation was among those specifically highlighted at Secretary of State Rubio's July 16 inaugural ministerial establishing the International Consortium to Combat Political Terrorism (ICCPT), which named FAI and its armed wing, the FAI International Revolutionary Front (FAI/FRI), among the founding target organizations. The parcel bomb was mailed three weeks after the FTO designation took effect, and the claim was published one day before the ministerial, demonstrating no observable deterrence from either action.
This attack continues an established FAI pattern of targeting individuals and institutions associated with state defense programs. Historical FAI actions include letter bombs to executives associated with nuclear energy, explosive parcels to European banking regulators, and attacks on prison officials associated with the incarceration of anarchist prisoners across Italy, Spain, and Greece. The escalation toward defense-industrial chief executives reflects a doctrinal adaptation that tracks the organizations most associated with NATO military capacity in the current geopolitical environment.
US defense contractors and their personnel traveling to Italy face a heightened threat environment during any active FAI targeting campaign. Leonardo DRS employees traveling to Italy for parent-company business or joint program meetings carry a particular security profile. The parcel bomb format presents challenges because it requires no high-visibility acquisition of specialized materials and does not require the attacker to be present at detonation. Law enforcement agencies covering defense contractor personnel with Italy travel should ensure current security advisories reflect the active campaign.
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