Paris Olympics opening ceremony: French high-speed train network targeted with 'malicious acts' ahead of events
Hours before the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics on Friday, part of France’s high-speed rail network was paralyzed by a “massive attack.”
PARIS — Hours before the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics on Friday, part of France’s high-speed rail network was paralyzed by a “massive attack” that disrupted service for hundreds of thousands of passengers, officials said.
Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said the country’s intelligence services and law enforcement agencies had been mobilized to track down suspects as he warned in a post on X that “the consequences for the rail network are massive and serious.”
France’s national rail network SNFC said in a news release that a series of “coordinated” arson attacks had damaged a number of its facilities and services, while another “malicious act was foiled” on the LGV Sud-Est line connecting Paris and Lyon.
Calling the incident a “massive attack,” it said in an update that at least 250,000 passengers would be impacted Friday, with 800,000 expected to be affected over the weekend. A sweeping number of services had to be canceled, it said, warning passengers affected to postpone their travel plans and “not to go to the station.”
Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin told reporters Friday afternoon that there are no threats against the opening ceremony, adding that the attack on rail services has had no direct impact on the Olympics other than inconveniencing people arriving or leaving by train. Darmanin described the sabotage as coordinated attacks against the French people rather than against the Olympic Games.
Rating: 5