France Train Services Resume 3 Days After Arson Attacks Disrupted Travel

Paris: Three days after concerted acts of sabotage severely hampered travel before the Olympics opening ceremony, France’s high-speed train network resumed regular operations on Monday, according to Transport Minister Patrice Vergriete.
It is unknown who carried out the three arson assaults on crucial sites of the train infrastructure early Friday, or whether they were planned to interrupt the Games’ opening ceremony later in the day.

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Following the weekend’s renovations, the network gradually restored to normal.

“This morning, all trains are running,” Vergriete told RTL radio.

The attacks affected 800,000 travelers, but “in the end, 700,000 were able to make their trips” while 100,000 were affected by train disruptions, he added.

Since the assaults, 50 drones, 250 rail security officers, and 1,000 maintenance staff have been dispatched to enhance security along the 28,000-kilometer (17,400-mile) high-speed train network, the minister stated.

Vergriete estimated that the event will cost millions of euros.

Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin stated that investigators have “identified a certain number of profiles who could have committed” the acts of sabotage.

Far-left French anarchists have a history of arson assaults against the train network.

The strikes were “deliberate, very precise, and extremely well-targeted,” Darmanin told France 2 television.

“This is the traditional type of action of the ultra-left,” the politician stated.

When questioned if the detected profiles were near to the extreme left, Darmanin replied, “We must be cautious.”

He elaborated: “The question is to know whether they were manipulated” or only behaved “for their own benefit” .

“These are people who may be close to this movement,” the interior minister stated.

A message signed by “an unexpected delegation” was sent to various news sites, professing sympathy for the sabotage and criticizing the Olympic Games as a “celebration of nationalism” and governmental persecution of peoples.

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