Just hours before the opening ceremony of 2024 Olympics, the high-speed train network in France was severely damaged by widespread, "criminal" acts of vandalism, including arson attacks. This caused travel to Paris from other parts of France and Europe to be entirely disrupted.
Train service is expected to be affected through the weekend for more than a million people, including French vacationers and Olympic athletes. The attacks appeared to have been planned and carefully targeted at strategic points on the rail network.
French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal wrote on X that France’s intelligence services had been mobilised to find the perpetrators, characterising the attacks as “acts of sabotage”, which were “prepared and coordinated”
Transport Minister Patrice Vergriete called the “massive attack” against the rail network an “outrageous criminal act”. He described people fleeing from the scene of fires and the discovery of incendiary devices at the site.
Who Is Behind French Train Network Attack?
No group has claimed responsibility for the vandalism that disrupted France's high-speed TGV rail network, and authorities have not indicated a political motive.
Sports Minister Amélie Oudéa-Castéra condemned the attack, describing it as "completely appalling". In an interview with BFMTV, she said: "To target the games is to target France."
The state-owned railway operator, SNCF, advised travellers to postpone their trips and avoid going to stations, saying: "We ask all travellers who can do so to postpone their trip and not go to the station."
An investigation into the incidents is underway, but so far, no information has been released about potential perpetrators.
Rail Disruption Causes Travel Chaos
The attacks, which included three fires near tracks on the Atlantique, Nord, and Est lines, have affected major stations and international travel.
Videos posted on social networks showed the hall of the station saturated with travellers. Many passengers at the Gare du Nord, one of Europe's busiest train stations, were looking for answers and solutions on Friday morning. All eyes were on the central message boards as most services to northern France, Belgium and the United Kingdom were delayed.
International travel to and from the UK beneath the English Channel and to neighbouring Belgium has also been disrupted.
Lines across the country have been affected, particularly those connecting cities to the capital: traffic between Paris and Lille in northern France has been suspended, as has traffic from Tours and Le Mans to the southwest of the capital.
French holidaymakers who were intending to travel on what is one of the major departure weekends of the summer holidays are expected to be the hardest hit by the incidents.
How Is France Preparing For Olympic Security?
As the 2024 Paris Olympics has approached, France's security forces are in place for the largest peacetime deployment in its history. The stakes are high with numerous Olympic contests taking place outside of Paris, including football matches in Nantes and Bordeaux, both of which are connected to the city by major rail lines.
Up to 75,000 police, soldiers and hired guards will be on patrol in Paris at any one time, to guard venues and events.
The initial plan was to give free tickets to 600,000 members of the public to watch from the river's banks. However, the government was concerned about potential dangers such as a drone attack, therefore spectator numbers were reduced to 326,000.
