In France the high-speed rail network in France was disrupted by malicious acts including arsons, just hours before the Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony, according to the media reports.
Several high-speed TGV lines had been hit to the west, north, and east of Paris, and queues formed at Gare Montparnasse station in the city. Several trains had been cancelled.
Rail company SNCF warned that the situation could last at least all weekend as repairs were being carried out. In a statement, the SNCF said, ‘Last night, the SNCF was the victim of several acts of vandalism on the Atlantic, Northern, and Eastern high-speed lines. Fires were deliberately set to damage our installations’.
On Friday, French Transport Minister Patrice Vergriete condemned these criminal actions which will compromise the vacation departures of many French people. In a post on social media, Transport Minister Vergriete said, ‘Co-ordinated malicious acts targeted several TGV lines last night and will seriously disrupt traffic until this weekend’.
He also thanked the SNCF for trying to restore services as soon as possible. According to the media reports, the attack on the rail network was an act of sabotage. Meanwhile, trains were being diverted to different tracks but we will have to cancel a large number of them.
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