Italian Education Minister Visits Teacher Stabbed by 13-Year-Old Student in Bergamo

A 13-year-old student stabbed his 57-year-old French teacher, Chiara Mocchi, at the Leonardo da Vinci middle school in Trescore Balneario, in the province of Bergamo, on Wednesday, March 25, 2026, in an attack he had announced in advance on Telegram and then live-streamed from a camera fixed to his chest. Italy's Minister of Education and Merit, Giuseppe Valditara, visited Mocchi at the Papa Giovanni XXIII hospital in Bergamo on Sunday, March 29, in a conversation that lasted almost an hour. Mocchi, who is no longer in danger of her life, told the minister she misses her students and wants to return to the classroom. The boy, who wore a white T-shirt with the word "Vendetta" written in red on the day of the attack, had published a written manifesto in English on Telegram stating: "I will kill my French teacher. It is not a random choice, it is targeted." He then filmed himself entering the school, climbing the stairs, and encountering the teacher in a corridor, where he struck her in the neck. The attack in Trescore Balneario took place against a backdrop of growing concern in Italy over violence against teachers in schools. Minister Valditara has cited a declining trend in such incidents, from 53 recorded attacks on teachers in the 2023-24 school year to 41 in 2024-25. The Italian government introduced a ban on mobile phones in classrooms as one of its earlier measures to address school discipline.

Teacher writes open letter from hospital bed Mocchi dictated an open letter from her hospital bed, described by sources as written "with a still weak voice," in which she addressed her students and the broader school community. „If the Lord will grant it to me, I will return. I will return to the classroom, among the desks, where I have always felt I belonged. I will return to teaching, to believing in young people, to accompanying them in their difficult steps.” — Chiara Mocchi via Adnkronos She also addressed the boy who attacked her, writing that the wound "must not become a wall, but a bridge: toward a more attentive school, toward a more united community." Simona Tironi, the regional education councillor of Lombardy, visited Mocchi the day before Valditara and described her words as showing "commendable courage." Tironi cited Mocchi as saying she bore "no grudge toward the boy who attacked me, nor any desire for revenge," and that she would like him to return to the calm state he had been in months earlier. Mocchi is also receiving psychological support alongside medical care to help her process the trauma of the assault.

Lawyers dispute reports of boy's alleged remorse statement A dispute emerged over reports that the boy told investigators during questioning that he regretted not having killed the teacher. Carlo Foglieni, the lawyer representing the minor's family, issued a written statement firmly denying those reports, describing the boy during interrogation as appearing "detached from reality." „In respect of the ongoing investigations, it is considered necessary to firmly deny the news spread this morning regarding the content of the statements the minor would have made during questioning, with particular reference to the alleged statement: 'I am sorry I did not kill her.'” — Carlo Foglieni via Rai news Angelo Lino Murtas, the teacher's own lawyer, separately stated he was unaware of any official record containing such a statement, and called on media to avoid disseminating "inaccurate or unverified elements" given the seriousness of the case. According to reporting by Corriere della Sera, cited by SAPO, the boy appeared lucid and convinced during his statement to authorities, and also declared an intention to kill his parents. Investigators are focusing on the boy's online contacts, including a girl he had met online who was dealing with self-harm issues, to determine whether anyone had encouraged him in his actions. Potentially explosive chemical substances were also found at the family home and are being analyzed, according to the same reporting.

Boy handed to social services as minister pushes EU social media ban Because the attacker is under 14 years old, he cannot be prosecuted under Italian law, and the criminal case for attempted homicide is expected to be closed. The Juvenile Prosecutor's Office in Brescia has nonetheless opened two files on the case — one criminal and one civil — to investigate the circumstances and assess protective measures. The boy was handed over to social services at the request of juvenile prosecutor Giulia Tondina and placed in a protected facility from Wednesday evening onward, with a transfer to an appropriate community planned after evaluation by a child neuropsychiatrist. The boy's family stated he had already been seeing a psychologist due to anxiety stemming from a conflictual relationship with the teacher, and that his parents had not grasped the full extent of his distress. Minister Valditara used the case to renew a call for a European-wide ban on Telegram and other social media platforms for users under 15 years old, framing it as the next step after the government's existing ban on mobile phones in classrooms. 30 (attacks on teachers) — recorded in first seven months of 2025-26 school year, down from 53 in 2023-24

2023-24: 53, 2024-25: 41, 2025-26: 30