Bassetti received a death threat: "It happens when politics invades the realm of science."

"It's beyond madness, but I'm not surprised," he commented to Adnkronos Salute. A report was made to the Digos (Italian National Police).

"We will kill you," "infamous vaccinator." These are just two brief excerpts from the letter received yesterday by infectious disease specialist Matteo Bassetti in his institutional inbox. The specialist, director of Infectious Diseases at the San Martino Polyclinic Hospital in Genoa, has already "reported the incident to the DIGOS (Special Operations Division) and the competent authorities," he also wrote in a post on X. "It's beyond madness, but I'm not surprised," he commented to Adnkronos Salute, "because it already happened four years ago and unfortunately it's happening at a time when politicians and newspapers—or at least a segment of politicians that have always only campaigned on vaccines, and a certain segment of newspapers—are inflaming the scientific debate by invading other people's fields, and are refusing to give up their desire to continue smoothing over anti-vaxxers, and politicizing the vaccine institution." And "we are the ones who pay the price," he added in his post, "doctors and scientists who defend vaccines from the arrogant and incompetent attacks of politicians and the various gurus and shamans of the moment."

In recent days, Bassetti, in line with several medical and scientific figures, had publicly expressed the specialists' opposition to the appointment of two experts known for their critical stances on vaccines to the National Technical Advisory Group on Vaccinations (NITAG), the body that was later dismissed by Health Minister Orazio Schillaci. He had received several attacks. Then, yesterday, the threats arrived. The authors of the message called themselves "true right-wing Nazi-fascists." But the point is different, for Bassetti, and concerns the debate that has raged in recent days. "It almost comes across as if vaccination were a left-wing strategy while not getting vaccinated is right-wing. There's no greater mistake than that. In fact, a lot of people write to me and say: we're center-right and we're on the side of vaccines." All this, he continues, "demonstrates the weakness of Italian politics, and the message I received—I don't know if it came from a group of people or from a mentally challenged individual—is the result of the heated tone of recent days, the issue of the vaccine committee, and so on."

"In fact," Bassetti recounts, "it's been two or three years since I've received such serious threats. I can't help but report it to the DIGOS, as I always do, and file a complaint, and then they'll conduct all the necessary investigations." Beyond the episode itself, however, the appeal to tone things down is directed at those politicians, newspapers, and journalists who continue undeterred in this issue, inflaming and poisoning the wells. And these are the results. Naturally, the responsibility lies with the individual who sent this message, but there's a heavy political responsibility behind it. There's great sadness, of course; I think it's one of the lowest points we've ever reached." What happened "happened to me, but it could or could happen to anyone else," the expert explains. "There's a bad climate, and it was caused by politics, which has invaded a field that isn't its own, wanting to impose its own appointments and ideas. It was specifically created by some politicians I don't even want to name."