Arson Attack on France’s Rail Network: What We Know
Just hours before the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics, France was rocked by a series of arson attacks on its rail network on Friday, stoking fears over security during the Games.
No one was killed or reported injured, but the damage to France’s high-speed train lines caused major delays as thousands of local and international travelers were expected to converge on Paris for the ceremony and the Games. The arson attacks, which authorities have described as “criminal,” come amid heightened security concerns, when France is the center of a global spectacle.
Here’s what we know about the attacks and the resulting disruptions:
Is this a terrorist attack?
That is not clear yet, but France’s prime minister, Gabriel Attal, has described the fires as “acts of sabotage that were carried out in a prepared and coordinated way.” The police and intelligence services are investigating these “criminal acts,” he added in a post on social media.
So far, evidence shared by the French authorities suggests that the attacks were planned and deliberate. The fires all broke out at the same time on Friday, around 4 a.m. local time, said Patrice Vergriete, France’s transportation minister.
Jean-Pierre Farandou, the head of France’s national rail company, S.N.C.F, described the repairs that the attacks have necessitated as “very meticulous work.” The fires were set in pipes that carry cabling necessary for signaling, and located on key bifurcation points on the rail, meant to maximize the damage, Mr. Farandou said.
The episode is bound to raise fears in a country already deeply scarred by terrorist attacks. In 2015, attackers linked to the Islamic State killed 130 people in and around Paris. Then, in 2016, an attacker drove a bus through a crowd celebrating Bastille Day in Nice, in southern France. Lone assailants have also carried out shootings and stabbings, including the grisly beheading of a teacher in 2021.
Security had already been rigorous ahead of the Games, and in the immediate aftermath of the attacks, a security perimeter in Paris has been further tightened.
How bad are the disruptions?
The attacks have brought France’s rail system to a near standstill, causing chaos during a particularly busy time. More than one million people were expected to travel on the national rail system this weekend, according to France’s rail company. Not only were travelers making their way to Paris for the Games, but many French citizens were trying to leave the city for summer vacations. Some said that they wanted to get away from Olympic crowds. The repair work, the rail company said, is likely to take all weekend.
The fires were set on three of France’s four high-speed national lines, the Atlantic, Northern and Eastern, according to S.N.C.F. Authorities responded to fire on the line between Paris and Lille, around the town of Arras, about 100 miles north of Paris, the capital. Another fire was reported on the connection between Le Mans and Paris, near Courtalain, a town about 90 miles southwest of Paris. The rail company said that it thwarted an attack on a route that connects Paris to southeast France.
The Eurostar, the high-speed rail service that connects several countries in Western Europe, said that its service to Paris had been delayed by at least 90 minutes. Around Paris, about two dozen Metro stations on the route to the location of the opening ceremony, on the Seine, were shut. Security concerns also affected other modes of transport. Authorities briefly ordered the evacuation of the EuroAirport Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg, the French-Swiss airport near Basel, Switzerland, citing unspecified “safety reasons.”
How will this affect the Olympics?
The opening ceremony is expected to go ahead, but under heightened security. That increased security may make it harder for some visitors to reach Paris, even those using modes of transport not directly affected by the attacks.
The attacks have also cast a shadow over the start of the Games, dominating the public conversation and blighting the image of a country that had sought to project a sense of security over its hosting of the event.
The mood in the host city had already been tense, with tens of thousands of police officers, counterterrorism units and military personnel deployed to guard not only Olympic venues, but tourist sites, street corners and train stations. A section of the Seine had already been cordoned off on both banks.
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