Italy’s top domestic security official said today that terrorists were likely to head to Europe once violence in Iraq was over, and that Italy was getting ready to deal with the threat.

ITALY will not be intimidated by threats from Muslim militants but cannot dismiss the possibility of an eventual attack, Interior Minister Giuseppe Pisanu said yesterday, after a group claiming al-Qaida links vowed to strike.

ITALIAN anti-terrorist police yesterday captured one of the masterminds of the March 11 Madrid bombings as part of an investigation involving police in at least two other European countries.

Italy’s Interior Minister warned today of looming “grave threats” in demonstrations during the visit to Rome of President George Bush next week.