Multiple “malicious” incidents, including arson, targeted France’s high-speed train lines on Friday. These acts have been described as an attack on France and coordinated sabotage intended to disrupt travel before the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics.
According to a post by the French state railway company SNCF on X, a significant number of trains were diverted or canceled. SNCF urged all travelers who can to postpone their trips and avoid going to the station.
The Atlantic, Northern, and Eastern high-speed lines were affected, with damage inflicted on several SNCF facilities. The operator also mentioned that one of the incidents was thwarted in the east, as SNCF agents scared off multiple individuals.
SNCF CEO Jean-Pierre Farandou told journalists on Friday that cables – which are there to ensure the security of train drivers – were set on fire and taken apart but that authorities “don’t know who is behind it.”
An intelligence source told CNN that French intelligence services are “fully mobilized” to find those responsible. The source added that “these methods have been used by the far-left in the past” but “there is no evidence to tie today’s actions to them.”
The Paris prosecutor’s office has opened an investigation into the attack and detailed four separate charges, relating to the damage of state property and taking part in organized crime. Some of the crimes listed are punishable by up to 20 years’ imprisonment and a fine of €300,000 ($325,000).
‘We didn’t need a day like this’
Travel on the affected lines is “very disrupted,” with the railway network needing to divert and cancel a large number of trains, SNCF said. Disruptions – which it estimates could impact around 250,000 travelers today – were expected throughout the weekend, affecting 800,000 passengers, as work crews oversee repairs, it added.
