Ahead of Paris Olympics kick-off, French rail lines 'sabotaged'

Paris: France's high-speed rail network was hit Friday with widespread and "criminal" acts of vandalism including arson attacks, paralysing travel to Paris from across the rest of the country and Europe, and thwarting Olympic athletes from travel, only hours before the grand opening ceremony of the Games.

French officials condemned the attacks as "criminal actions," but said there was no sign of a direct link to the Games. Prosecutors in Paris opened a national investigation saying the crimes could carry sentences of 10 to 20 years.

As Paris authorities geared up for a spectacular parade on and along the Seine River, three fires were reported near the tracks on the high-speed lines of Atlantique, Nord and Est, causing disruptions that affected hundreds of thousands of travelers. Among them were Olympic athletes themselves.


Two out of four trains carrying Olympic athletes to Paris on the western Atlantique high-speed line were stopped hours before the opening ceremony, affected by the coordinated sabotage on the tracks, an official from the French railway operator SNCF said Friday. French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said France's intelligence services have been mobilised to find the perpetrators of the "acts of sabotage" which he described as "prepared and coordinated." AP