France’s rail network has been ‘paralysed’ by a series of co-ordinated arsons – right at the start of the Olympic Games today – affecting at least 800,000 people.
Flames engulfed train tracks at ‘strategic points’ across the country – with hours to go before the Opening Ceremony on the River Seine in Paris.
Gare du Nord, where the Eurostar stops in Paris, is also affected by the attacks on the rail network, said a spokesperson for SNCF, the national state-owned railway company in the country.
‘Numerous stations are affected, including Garde du Nord, with services across France cancelled or delayed,’ he said.
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Passengers at London St Pancras, where Eurostar runs trains direct to France, confirmed its trains would be delayed today due to the ongoing issues over the Channel.
Thousands of people from the UK are due to travel to Paris by rail today, for the start of the Olympics.
Trains to neighbouring Belgium and to London under the English Channel have also been affected, with warnings for people to delay their travel.
Eurostar said in a statement: ‘Due to coordinated acts of malice in France, affecting the high speed line between Paris and Lille, all high speed trains going to and coming from Paris are being diverted via the classic line today, Friday, July 26.
‘This extends the journey time by around an hour and a half. Several trains have been cancelled.’
Lines in the west, north and east of France were also targeted, resulting in chaos.
Beyond the opening ceremony in Paris, transport minister Patrice Vergriete said the ‘criminal actions will compromise the holiday departures of many French people.’
Teams are ‘on site to carry out the diagnosis and begin repairs’ on train lines, but the disruptions ‘should last at least all weekend’.
Amélie Oudéa-Castera, France’s sports minister, has said it is unclear who carried out arson attacks on France’s high-speed train network.
Speaking to Sky News, the minister said the attacks were ‘probably a large-scale sabotage’ and were likely co-ordinated.
The minister refused to rule out Russian interference, but said it was also possible French nationals had carried out the attacks.
‘I have a little bit of anger. We are not going to let ourselves be destabilised by this,’ Oudéa-Castera told the broadcaster.
She said the perpetrators were ‘playing against the side of the athletes, who have been working so hard, for so many years’, and that the Opening Ceremony this evening would be fine as the government had ‘anticipated everything’.
At least 800,000 have been affected by the series of attacks.
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