Interior Minister Giuliano Amato on Friday ordered a probe to verify the existence of an Internet blog which posted a 'black list' of 162 Jewish university professors in Italy who the blog accused of creating a lobby.
Once the probe is complete, the minister said, appropriate action will be taken.
Amato intervened after a complaint was filed by the Rome Jewish Community which asked that the institutions ''block a cancer which could spread and strike anywhere''.
The 162 professors are employed at Rome's La Sapienza university and universities in other Italian cities.
''Any response must not be limited to those directly involved as individuals or as a group but involve all of society,'' observed the spokesman for the Rome Jewish Community, Riccardo Pacifici.
''Once those responsible for the blog have been identified, there must be thorough and definitive action by the authorities,'' he added.
La Sapienza Chancellor Renato Guarini issued a statement condemning the ''extremely serious initiative by people who, using an Internet blog, have committed an unacceptable act of intolerance''.
''Anti-Semitism and any and all forms of racial and cultural discrimination are the exact opposite of this university's mission and principles,'' he added.
''The chancellor offers his full support to all those who have been personally involved and, in particular, to the colleagues at La Sapienza.
One of those on the list was Anna Foa, a professor of modern history at La Sapienza, who said: ''We are dealing with a very disturbing incident. Those responsible for this insane initiative have committed a crime and must be punished''.
''We are on the borderline of madness. A list of names, together with anti-Semitic slogans, represents an evolution which is truly frightening,'' she added.
According to Foa, ''there are dozens of these kind of sites on the Internet but there has never been, until now, any lists posted. The Rome Jewish Community was right to have filed a complaint because this is a phenomenon which must not be underestimated''.
''Fortunately, there are explicit laws in Italy against anti-Semitism. It is now time for these laws to be applied also against those who exploit the Internet to spread messages of this nature,'' Foa concluded.
