France: 'Coordinated' Arson Attacks Disrupt Rail Network Ahead of Olympic Games

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JUL 26 2024

Above: Travelers queue as the Eurostar service experienced delays and cancelations at St Pancras International Station on July 26, 2024 in London, England. Routes between London and Paris had been disrupted by arson attacks in France. Image copyright: Dan Kitwood/Staff/Getty Images News via Getty Imagesstory last updated JUL 27 2024

The Facts

A series of what French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal called "coordinated" arson attacks broke out on Friday on three of France's four high-speed rail lines, disrupting the travel plans of over 1M weekend commuters ahead of the opening ceremony for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.
Attal called the fires "acts of sabotage," with prosecutors in Paris opening a criminal investigation. The chief executive officer of SNCF, a French rail company, said that the fires were mostly set in pipes that contained cables needed for signaling.
Service on one line has been running at normal levels while others have only seen partial resumption, with SNCF saying that repairs will need to continue over the weekend. Eurostar has said that journeys will be 1.5 hours longer due to the disruption, while SNCF advised travelers to postpone travel plans.

The Spin

Narrative A

France is presiding over one of the most dangerous Games in Olympic history. Groups seeking to avenge Israel's war in Gaza, Jihadists, Russian operatives, and climate agitators make up just some of the actors who are being initially accused of plotting against the Games in a dazzling matrix of threat vectors. These plots are increasing in frequency, and today a key vulnerability in France was exposed. Let's hope this is not a harbinger of things to come in Paris.

Foreign Policy

Narrative B

There is every indication that the Games in Paris will be safe, and France's model for dealing with multivariate threats could be the exemplar for years to come. France has deployed tens of thousands of personnel and a new surveillance system powered by artificial intelligence that will identify and predict potential dangers. While the media will accentuate the negative before any big event, France is putting into practice hard lessons regarding counterterrorism.

Vox