Olympics: France says rail lines repaired after sabotage

French national train operator SNCF said Sunday that repairs have been completed on the country's rail network, caused by several arson attacks on the first day of the 2024 Paris Olympics.

"Thanks to the exceptional efforts of SNCF Network staff, who worked non-stop since Friday morning, repairs are now fully completed on all the high-speed rail services affected by the sabotage attacks," SNCF said.

"Tests have been conclusive and the train lines can now function as normal," the operator said, adding that there would be no more disruption from Monday morning.

On the route between Paris and the southwest, practically all the scheduled trains were said to be running again, according to the rail operator.

From Paris heading north, three out of four scheduled trains were running with no delays, SNCF said.

The eastbound line from Paris has been back in regular service since Saturday.

What do we know about the vandalism?

Three arson attacks overnight into Friday severely disrupted rail traffic as dignitaries, athletes and fans were due to arrive for the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games.

The saboteurs targeted the high-speed TGV lines Atlantique, Est and Nord, which run from Paris to Bordeaux, Strasbourg and Lille respectively. Maintenance workers thwarted a fourth attack.

The Nord line also carries Eurostar trains between the French capital and London and Brussels.

Around 800,000 passengers were affected by delayed and canceled train services on Friday and Saturday, according to SNCF, including commuters and holidaymakers.

July and August are the peak vacation months in France.

Who was behind the act of sabotage? 

Investigators still do not know who was behind the attacks or if they were timed to disrupt the Olympics.

According to Le Parisien newspaper, the arson attacks could have been carried out by radical left-wingers. 

Several French and international media outlets received a letter with references to the far-left, claiming responsibility for the sabotage incidents and saying their motive was to disrupt the Games, the newspaper said.

Investigators are now looking into whether it was a genuine confession or a false claim.

Others have questioned whether Russia sought to cause embarrassment and disruption to the Games.

Police in Paris arrested a Russian national this week, saying he was suspected of "organizing events likely to lead to destabilization during the Olympic Games."

Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin told broadcaster France 2 on Saturday that a "number of findings" had raised confidence that authorities would "know fairly quickly who is responsible."

mm/wd (AFP, dpa)