Three of 10 SNCF high-speed rail trains are out of service while others are delayed by up to two hours until Monday as rail crews work to fix arson damage done to three rail lines ahead of the Paris Summer Olympics opening ceremony Friday. Photo by Lucas Dolego/EPA-EFE
July 27 (UPI) — Damage caused by an apparently coordinated attack on France’s high-speed rail system Friday should be fixed by Monday, but three trains are canceled while others have two-hour delays until then.
Officials for France’s national rail line SNCF said they shut down three of its 10 high-speed trains Saturday that normally would travel rail routes struck by alleged saboteurs on Friday.
Passengers traveling to and from Paris, where the 2024 Summer Olympics opened on Friday, should expect two-hour delays.
A fourth of all Eurostar rail services also are canceled until the rail system is restored.
French officials said three coordinated arson attacks knocked out important electronics and signal posts just hours before the opening ceremony for the Paris Olympic Games was to start.
A fourth rail line attack was foiled.
French officials said they thwarted four separate plots to sabotage the Olympic Games in Paris in recent weeks but did not provide details.
Officials for the SNFC estimated 250,000 passengers were affected by Friday’s sabotage of the rail systems leading in and out of Paris.
Many flew to Paris instead to attend the opening ceremony and subsequent athletic events.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer was among those who intended to take the train to Paris for the opening ceremony but instead had to fly there.
SNCF officials said no one has claimed responsibility for the sabotage attacks, which its crews worked nonstop through pouring rain to fix.
The arson attacks damaged cabling boxes at critical junctions on the North, Brittany and South-West lines. A fourth attack on a southern line connecting Paris and Marseilles was foiled.
The saboteurs cut fiber optic cables and set them on fire, which made it dangerous to operate trains on those rail lines.
Service on the Brittany lines should resume during the weekend while the other two lines won’t be working until Sunday, SNCF officials said.
French officials said the attacks were coordinated by a single organization.
SNCF CEO Jean-Pierre Farandou told media that French authorities don’t know who coordinated the sabotage effort.
Many have speculated that Russia coordinated the attack due to France’s continued support of Ukraine after Russia attacked that nation and has become bogged down in a costly war.
France is one of several nations recently enduring what many suspect has been Russia-coordinated sabotage attacks on infrastructure and other viable targets.
Russian officials have not admitted to coordinating sabotage attacks in France or anywhere else.
On Saturday, President Emmanuel Macron reminded people to remain vigilant.
“The coming weeks will remain difficult even though we have crossed a major bridge. I request that you remain mobilized and we will be by your side until the day after,” Macron said at the police headquarters in Paris.