New sabotage damages fiber optic network in France – DW – 07/29/2024

The fibre optic networks of several telecom operators were vandalised in six regions of France, a police source reported on Monday (07/29/2024), who described the incidents as “sabotage”. The capital Paris, which hosts the Olympic Games, was not affected, the source said, adding that the incidents took place in the Bouches-du-Rhône, Aude, Oise, Hérault and Meuse departments.

Local press reports indicate that cables were cut from communications cabinets and facilities were destroyed in the Meuse region near Luxembourg and the Oise region near Paris, mainly affecting fixed-line services.

The incident affected operators such as Free and SFR and comes after an attack in which arson disrupted the high-speed train network on Friday, just hours before the opening of the Olympic Games, although it is unknown whether the two sabotages are related. A worker was arrested in connection with the case on Sunday at a facility of the national railway company, SNCF, in Oissel, northwestern France, a police source said.

Arrest of environmental activists too

Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin confirmed the arrest. In an interview with public television France 2, Darmanin said that this type of sabotage is “the traditional mode of action of the ultra-left.” Asked if it was a terrorist act, he reminded that the body competent to give it this category is the National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor’s Office (PNAT), which at the moment has not decided whether to investigate, which is in the hands of the Paris Prosecutor’s Office. In his case, the minister has specified that he “would not classify it as terrorism”, but rather as “an act of sabotage”.

Darmanin also reported that fifty radical environmental activists have also been arrested for preparing protest or sabotage actions during the Paris Olympic Games competitions. The minister said in the same interview that about 150 Extinction Rebellion activists were going to take part in “actions of sabotage or radical protest” during the “first tests of the Olympic Games”.

Rail traffic restored

On Friday morning, the fiber optic cables that pass near the tracks and that guarantee the transmission of safety data to drivers (such as traffic lights, changing needles …) were also cut and set on fire at various points on the lines Atlantic (west), north and east of Mozdok. The public railway company SNCF announced on Sunday that the repair works were completed and that there would be “no disturbances” from “Monday morning”.

“All trains” on the French high-speed network are running “normally”, French Transport Minister Patrice Vergiet said today. A total of 800,000 passengers were affected over the weekend, including 100,000 who had to cancel their trips.

lgc (AFP, RTR, EFE)