A “massive arson attack” brought chaos to France’s high-speed rail network the night before the Olympic opening ceremony in Paris.
“This is a massive attack on a large scale to paralyse the TGV network,” train operator SNCF told AFP. It added that many trains will have to be cancelled and the situation will last “at least all weekend while repairs are conducted.”
SNCF said there were “several simultaneous malicious acts overnight,” targeting the Atlantic, northern, and eastern high-speed lines. Another attempted attack on the southeastern line was foiled, they added.
FranceInfo says five acts of vandalism or attempted vandalism took place between 1 a.m. and 5.30 a.m., targeting electrical or signalling boxes. Signals along the tracks were set on fire and cables were cut and set alight.
Jean-Pierre Farandou, the train operator’s chief executive, said 800,000 passengers would be affected as crowds descend on Paris for the Olympics. SNCF urged passengers not to travel and to stay away from stations.
Speaking on BFMTV, Farandou said, “It’s a part of France that is under attack, it’s the French who are under attack.”
“It was also, of course, the inauguration of the opening of the Olympic Games, with many French people going up to Paris to enjoy a day or three to share in the joy of the Olympic Games. All that is ruined. But we’re not going to give up.”
Eurostar services between London and Paris were also delayed by the vandalism. “Due to coordinated acts of vandalism in France, affecting the high speed line between Paris and Lille, all high speed trains going to and coming from Paris are being diverted via the classic line today Friday 26 July,” the operator said. “This extends the journey time by around an hour and a half.”
At time of publication, no one has claimed responsibility for the attacks and no arrests have been made. However, a security source told Le Figaro that incendiary attacks on installations are generally a signature of the far-left.
The attacks came hours after Belgian authorities detained seven terror suspects in raids across the country.
The Belgian Federal prosecutor said they are “suspected of participating in the activities of a terrorist group, of financing terrorism and preparing a terrorist attack.”
Spokesman Arnaud d’Oultremont told the AP that investigators had “not yet identified the suspects’ concrete objectives.” In contrast, French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin thanked “our Belgian friends who today led a judicial operation to protect us”—begging further questions about that state of pre-Olympics security.
On Friday, the Basel-Mulhouse airport at the Franco-Swiss border was briefly evacuated for security reasons after a bomb threat as police still searched for the perpetrators of the train system attacks.
