2024 France railway arson attacks
 | This article documents a current event. Information may change rapidly as the event progresses, and initial news reports may be unreliable. The latest updates to this article may not reflect the most current information. (July 2024) |
| 2024 France railway arson attacks | |
|---|---|
 High-speed train lines targeted by the arson attacks | |
| Location | LGV Atlantique LGV Nord LGV Est LGV Sud-Est |
| Date | 26 July 2024 01:00 AM[1] – 05:30 AM[1] (UTC+01:00) |
Attack type | Arson |
| Deaths | None[2] |
| Injured | None[2] |
| Perpetrators | Unknown |
On 26 July 2024, the day of the opening ceremony of the 2024 Summer Olympics, a series of arson attacks damaged the LGV Atlantique, Nord and Est lines of the French high-speed railway system.[3] International and domestic rail services were widely disrupted,[4] with around 800,000 passengers affected.[5] There was also an attempted attack on LGV Sud-Est line, though it was foiled by TGV maintenance workers who happened to be on-site.[6]
Background
A previous case had already occurred in the country on May 8, during the arrival of the Olympic flame in Marseille.[7] Four incendiary devices had been found on the LGV Méditerranée line between Aix and Marseille.[8]
Attacks
The arsonist and vandals damaged four signal boxes along the lines connecting Paris with cities such as Lille in the north, Bordeaux in the west and Strasbourg in the east. Another attack on the LGV Sud-Est line was foiled.[6] Later, Eurostar confirmed that they had cancelled one in four trains as the arson attacks caused high-speed rail disruption. Apart from international trains, domestic rail services were also widely disrupted.[4] It is estimated that 800,000 passengers were affected.[5] The Paris prosecutor has opened a probe into a suspected bid to undermine "fundamental national interests". The intelligence services and law enforcement were mobilized to find and punish the perpetrators of these criminal acts.[5]
Sabotage sites
- LGV Atlantique: near Arrou (neighbouring town of Courtalain)[9]
- LGV Est Européenne: two sites, first between the Meuse TGV station and Lamorville, second in the surroundings of Pagny-sur-Moselle[9]
- LGV Nord: near Croisilles[9]
- LGV Sud-Est: near Vergigny, foiled by railway workers.[9]
Impact
British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer was originally planned to travel by Eurostar for the Olympics opening ceremony; however, he flew instead due to delays and cancellations caused by the arson attacks.[10]
Reactions
Domestic
The French sports minister, Amélie Oudéa-Castéra, expressed her outrage at the vandalism and said that targeting the games was equivalent to targeting France itself.[11]
French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal pledged to "find and punish" those responsible for "paralysing" the connectivity by sabotage attacks ahead of the evening's opening ceremony.[12]
The French transport minister, Patrice Vergriete, warned of "very serious consequences" for rail traffic throughout the weekend, with connections towards northern, eastern, and northwestern France being halved.[11]
Foreign
On 25 July 2024, the Israeli Foreign minister Israel Katz had warned his French counterpart about a plot backed by Iranian terrorist proxies to derail the events.[13] Iran denied these allegations before and after the attack.[14][15]
See also
References
- ^ a b Becq, Coralie (26 July 2024). ""Massive attack" on the SNCF network". france3-regions.francetvinfo.fr. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
- ^ a b Chutel, Lynsey (26 July 2024). "What We Know About the Attacks on France's Rail Network". The New York Times. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
- ^ Bisset, Victoria; Noack, Rick (26 July 2024). "Arson disrupts France's high-speed trains hours before Olympics, officials say". The Washington Post. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
- ^ a b Phillips, Jacob; Mata, William (26 July 2024). "Eurostars cancelled as arson attack sparks travel chaos ahead of Olympics - live". The Standard. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
- ^ a b c "French rail network hit by arson attacks before Olympics opening ceremony". The Guardian. 26 July 2024. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
- ^ a b "'Criminal' attack on France's high-speed train network". France24. 26 July 2024. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
- ^ "AN INCENDIARY DEVICE ALREADY FOUND ON THE LGV SUD-EST DURING THE PASSAGE OF THE FLAME IN MARSEILLE". bfmtv. 26 July 2024. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
- ^ "a malicious act foiled on the South-East axis". france3-regions.francetvinfo.fr. 26 July 2024. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
- ^ a b c d "Le trafic de TGV en France commence à reprendre après des perturbations liées à des 'actes de malveillance'" [TGV traffic in France begins to resume after disruptions linked to 'malicious acts']. RTS. 26 July 2024. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
- ^ "France's rail traffic disrupted by 'malicious acts' on morning of Olympic opening ceremony". Le Monde. 26 July 2024. Archived from the original on 26 July 2024. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
- ^ a b "Criminal act on high speed train network". The Times of India. 26 July 2024. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
- ^ "PM vows to 'find and punish' Olympics saboteurs". The Telegraph. 26 July 2024. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
- ^ "Israel warns France of Iran-backed plot". Reuters. 25 July 2024. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
- ^ "Tehran reacts to anti-Iran Israeli claims in Olympics 2024". Mehr News Agency. 26 July 2024. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
- ^ Izadi, Ali (26 July 2024). "FM Spox undermines Zionists' accusations against Iran regarding Olympics". IRNA English. Retrieved 26 July 2024.