Two small home-made bombs exploded last night in rubbish bins near EU Commission President Romano Prodi's home in the northern Italian city of Bologna, police said.
Mr Prodi was not in his flat at the time. No one was hurt and there was no property damage, they said. Explosives experts defused a third device placed in another nearby bin.
Bologna Police Chief Marcello Fulvio was quoted in several newspapers today as saying initial inquiries pointed towards anarchists who had targeted policemen guarding Mr Prodi's home rather than the politician himself.
Corriere della Seranewspaper said the rudimentary devices were made from pressure cookers filled with explosive material.
Several parcel bombs were sent to Italian police stations in October and one wounded a policeman in November when it blew up in his hands. Police have said they suspected anarchist groups in those attacks too.