A ‘massive arson attack’ on France‘ s rail network brought chaos to the start of the Paris Olympics today.
With just hours to go before the opening ceremony on the River Seine on Friday, fires were started at key installations, bringing trains to a halt.
The Gare du Nord – the main Eurostar in Paris – was hit by the ongoing attacks on the rail network, said a spokesman for SNCF, France’s rail operator.
‘Numerous stations are affected, including Garde du Nord, with services across France cancelled or delayed,’ he said.
Thousands of people from the UK are due to be travelling to Paris by rail today, for the start of the Olympics.
This caused the cancellation of multiple services, including ones meant to be bringing sports fans into the French capital.
There have been a series of ‘coordinated malicious acts’ said Transport Minister Patrice Vergriete, pointing to a series of fires.
They were focused on the TGV high speed train network which covers the whole of France, and which is particularly busy at this time of year.
Beyond the Olympics, Mr Vergriete said the ‘criminal actions will compromise the holiday departures of many French people.’
The first blaze was detected early on Friday morning near tracks at Courtalain, in the Eure-et-Loir department.
It caused the interruption of traffic on the hugely busy Atlantique high-speed line.
SNCF also referred to a ‘malicious act’ on the high-speed line between Lille and Paris, in the northern Arras sector.
TGV Inoui and Ouigo trains were diverted to conventional lines, causing cancellations and far longer journey times.
Crowds built up at major Paris stations such as Montparnasse, where trains to and from nearby towns such as Tours and Le Mans were all cancelled.
A spokesman for SNCF said it was the victim of ‘a massive arson attack to paralyze the TGV network’.
He said the disruption should ‘last at least the whole weekend’, and would have a knock-on effect across the network.
Criminal investigations will be opened into the attacks, but there was no initial theory as to who was behind them.
Olympic organisers have long feared acts of sabotage tagetting the multi-billion pounds games, and a vast security operation costing £350million has unfolded in Paris to try and counter threats.
The largest peacetime deployment of forces in France’s history involves some 75,000 soldiers, police and private security agents.
‘We’re focused and we’re ready,’ said General Lionel Catar, one of the military planners before the showpiece opening.
The priority is to protect some 80,000 competitors as they progress down the River Seine in dozens of barges, in front of some 350,000 spectators, and a TV audience of more than a billion.
Gérald Darmanin, France’s Interior Ministry, said ‘the terrorist threat remains high’ and that ‘a high level of vigilance’ remains essential.
This comes after a 40-year-old man was charged with working ‘with a foreign power to try and incite hostilities in France’ earlier this week.
Kirill Gryaznov who denies any wrongdoing – has been identified as working for the FSB, Russia’s Federal Security Service domestic intelligence agency.
He is said to have boasted about turning the start of the Paris Olympics into ‘an opening ceremony like no other’.
The opening ceremony for the Olympic Games will take place tonight, with 80 barges of athletes and other competitors sailing down the River Seine in front of thousands of guests and VIPs.
In addition, Israel’s Foreign Minister, Israel Katz, alerted the French foreign ministry to a potential terror threat in a diplomatic note on Thursday, expressing his fear that Iran might target Israelis during the Olympic Games.
‘We have intelligence indicating that Iranian operatives and other terrorist groups are planning to target members of the Israeli delegation and Israeli tourists,’ Katz said in his warning, according to Israeli media.
This comes as French cops detained an alleged jihadist over suspicions of a terror plot targeting the Olympics.
The 18-year-old man from Gironde, a region in southwest France, was arrested yesterday, with police reportedly finding evidence for him believing jihadist ideology, according to local media.
Investigators confirmed to local media that the was connected to another man, also 18, who was taken into custody on Tuesday.
The two allegedly communicated on an encrypted messaging service, where they reportedly wrote that they wanted to commit a ‘violent action’ against the Olympics soon.
