France’s national rail operator said on Sunday it had repaired damage caused by vandals who paralysed the rail network hours before the Olympics opening ceremony, and that normal services would resume on Monday.
Rail traffic on the main line heading west from Paris is already “practically normal” and “three out of four” high-speed TGV trains are running on the main line heading north from the capital, with “no increase in travel times from now on”, operator SNCF said on Sunday.
It is not yet clear who carried out the three attacks on strategic points of the rail infrastructure in the midnight between Thursday and Friday, or whether the attacks were deliberately aimed at disrupting the opening ceremony of the Games on Friday.
Thousands of rail passengers faced inconvenience due to cancelled and delayed trains for two days on Friday and Saturday, even as 800,000 travellers were due to leave for their summer holidays.
“Thanks to the extraordinary efforts of SNCF network staff, who worked continuously since Friday morning, repair work on all high-speed rail services affected by the sabotage attacks has now been fully completed,” the operator said.
“The tests have been conclusive and the rail lines are now able to function normally.”
“There will be no disruption from Monday morning,” it said.
No group has claimed responsibility for the carefully planned nighttime attacks. Maintenance workers foiled the fourth attack.
Search for criminals
A source close to the Paris judicial authority, which has launched an investigation, said all the attacks were carried out by “the same entity”.
A statement signed by “an unexpected delegation” was sent to several news media outlets expressing support for the sabotage and criticizing the Olympic Games as a “celebration of nationalism” and the oppression of people by nation states.
But sources close to the investigation said it was not a claim of responsibility but merely a message of support, it gave no details of the attacks and contained “nothing serious.”
“We have identified some elements who, we think, we will soon know who is responsible for something that obviously did not disrupt the Olympic Games but disrupted part of the French people’s holidays,” Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin told France 2 television on Saturday.
French authorities are on high alert for possible terrorist attacks during the Games, which run until Aug. 11.
Thousands of police and soldiers have been deployed on security duty during the Olympics.
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