The Paris Olympic Games kicked off on July 26th with a vibrant riverside spectacle. Athletes were carried along the Seine on boats, accompanied by dancers on high poles, drag queens on bridges, and the Eiffel Tower illuminated with the Olympic rings—all in a downpour. France promised the world’s largest open-air show, with over 300,000 spectators lining the riverside and hundreds more watching from windows and balconies.
The event featured stunning dance, live music, and acrobatics along more than 6 km of the river, from the Pont d’Austerlitz to the Eiffel Tower.
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However, the ceremony faced challenges. Sabotage attacks on the Trains à Grande Vitesse (TGV) rail network caused travel disruptions across France hours before the event. The weather added another obstacle, with 15 days’ worth of rain falling in just 6 hours.
The Société nationale des chemins de fer français (SNCF) reported coordinated arson attacks damaging facilities and services, and a “malicious act” was thwarted on the Ligne à Grande Vitesse (LGV) Sud-Est line, which connects Paris and Lyon.
How the Sabotage Derailed French Transport Ahead of Olympics?
Prime Minister Gabriel Attal called the incident a “massive attack” and reported that at least 250,000 passengers would be impacted on Friday, with an estimated 800,000 affected over the weekend. A large number of services had to be canceled, and affected passengers were advised to postpone their travel plans and avoid going to the station.
As a pre-response of an attack, an unprecedented security operation has been put in place for the opening ceremony, involving around 45,000 police officers across Paris and 10,000 military personnel in the Île-de-France region. This deployment is the largest in the country since World War II and the largest ever during peacetime.
SNCF, reported that three arson attacks overnight had destroyed cabling boxes at strategic junctions on the rail network. Traffic on the high-speed line between Lille and Paris was halted due to “a malicious act in the Arras area.” Additionally, vandalism between Metz and Nancy caused significant disruptions on the route between Paris and eastern France.
Traffic on the Atlantic line was also affected by sabotage at a point where the tracks diverge for Brittany and southwestern France. There were further thwarted sabotage attempts on the southeastern line from Paris.
France Takes Hardline on Suspected Rail Sabotage
The Paris public prosecutor’s office announced an investigation into charges including damage to property likely to harm the nation’s fundamental interests, which could lead to a sentence of up to 15 years in prison and a fine of 225,000 euros (about $244,200).
Meanwhile, Eurostar reported on its website that all high-speed trains between Paris and Lille were being diverted from the high-speed line to a slower, conventional route. The company stated that it had mobilized teams at stations, call centers, and onboard trains to assist passengers and provide updates.
Who to Blame?
Experts have warned of potential risks from the Kremlin disrupting the Games, following the arrest of an alleged Russian spy earlier this week. France’s diplomatic and military support for Ukraine has placed it in the sights of a new Russian campaign against Europe known as “hybrid warfare,” which includes sabotage, arson, cyber-attacks, and other efforts to destabilize Western democracies.
There is already a precedent for such actions; in May, a mysterious fire broke out at the Diehl arms factory in Berlin. German investigators initially deemed it an accident, despite the Diehl group being part of the supply chain supporting Ukrainian forces with weapons.
The previous month, pro-Russian arsonists targeted a business with commercial ties to Ukraine in East London, prompting the British government to expel Russia’s defense attaché in response. Security specialists and French authorities are concerned about the possibility of more incidents as the Olympics approach.
However, a French intelligence source informed that the sabotage mirrored previous incidents linked to the far-left. Meanwhile, Israel has pointed fingers at Iran, its longstanding adversary in the Middle East, accusing it of continuing to fund and support Hamas, as well as the Lebanese group Hezbollah.
Russia’s History of Olympic Cyber Sabotage Continues
Cybersecurity experts suggest that Russia is conducting extensive covert operations online. A recent video surfaced on social media showing someone posing as a representative of the Palestinian militant group Hamas, threatening attacks during the Olympic Games, with the statement: “Rivers of blood will flow through the streets of Paris.”
However, Hamas disavowed the video, and Palestinians mocked the speaker’s accent. Investigators at Microsoft’s Threat Analysis Center identified the video as the work of Storm-1679, a faction of Russia’s Internet Research Agency troll farm, which has been targeting the Olympics.
Last month, Microsoft reported other examples of such content, including a clip featuring an AI-generated voice mimicking Tom Cruise and criticizing the International Olympic Committee (IOC), as well as a fabricated report from French broadcaster France24 falsely claiming that 24% of Olympic tickets had been returned due to terrorism fears.
Russia has a history of alleged cyber sabotage, including incidents targeting the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics in South Korea and the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics.
The curtain has already rose on the Paris Olympic Games, but the City of Light finds itself at the epicenter of a global spectacle, marred by challenges yet undeterred in spirit. While sabotage attempts and torrential rains threatened to dampen the festivities, the resilience of the French people and the allure of the Games prevailed. As athletes and spectators from around the world converge on this iconic city, the message is clear: even in the face of adversity, the Olympic flame burns bright, ready to ignite the hopes and dreams of millions in the days to come.
