Hours before the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics, train operator SNCF announced Friday that “malicious acts,” including arson assaults, had crippled France’s high-speed rail network. The strikes were organized acts of “sabotage,” according to a person close to the investigation who spoke to AFP. “The TGV network is being paralyzed by a massive attack on a large scale,” SNCF told AFP, adding that numerous trips will need to be canceled. The national rail operator stated that the attacks had an impact on its Atlantic, northern, and eastern lines and that “SNCF was the victim of several simultaneous malicious acts overnight.”
The attacks took place as Paris was heavily guarded in preparation for the Summer Olympics opening ceremony, which was anticipated to draw 300,000 spectators and a VIP audience. Up to 7,500 athletes will ride in a flotilla of 85 boats as they march down a six-kilometer (four-mile) section of the Seine River on Friday night. At a time when France is on the highest alert for terrorist threats, the choice to hold the Summer Olympics outside the main athletics stadium is risky.
