France: 'Chaos' on trains and metro. Airport evacuated. Dozens of attacks on athletes and tourists

France is being subjected to a series of sabotage and coordinated destabilization efforts as the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games takes place on the Seine today, where for the first time in history athletes will be represented on board boats.

Some time ago, the French authorities were again put on alert after sabotage on French railways.

Learn about the rural sabotage affecting the opening of the Paris Olympics. Tight security can't prevent rail line disruptions. Read more at https://t.co/3mBqLD5btf.

— Felix Okpatah Lawrence III (@okpatah_iii) July 26, 2024

In particular, the terminal of the Europort of Basel-Mulhouse airport, located on the border of France and Switzerland, was evacuated for security reasons.

Flights are temporarily suspended. «This is a bomb warning,” The authorities of the Upper Rhine clarified, adding that the usual procedure, which involves sending sappers, would be applied.

26/07/2024 – 10:54

For safety reasons, the terminal had to be evacuated and is currently closed. Flight operations have been temporarily suspended. Passengers are requested to contact their airline for information about their flight. Update follows… pic.twitter.com/AUGUsNcspZ

— EuroAirport (@euroairportcom) July 26, 2024

For safety reasons, the terminal has been evacuated and is currently closed. Flight operations have been temporarily suspended. Passengers are asked to contact their airline for flight information. Updates to follow…

🇫🇷❗️ Les premières images des dégradations du réseau SNCF.

Au regard du caractère coordonné et prémédité de ces dégradations, 2 hypothèses sont possibles quant à leurs auteurs:

– un groupe anti Jeux Olympiques
– a shifting ingredienthttps://t.co/JbNfnEjMLI#Paris2024 pic.twitter.com/9HLmIzjKyR

— Random OSINT (@osint_random) July 26, 2024

Five incidents of damage or attempted damage to the SNCF TGV network occurred between 1am and 5.30am on Friday. part of the high-speed line in Vandières (Meurthe-et-Moselle). In a statement, SNCF said the attacks had disrupted services between London and Paris: “We are rerouting some trains on classic lines, but we will have to cancel a large number of services.”

As we reported earlier, “a large-scale attack capable of causing paralysis” was carried out on the TGV high-speed train network by hundreds of far-right activists, she told AFP hours before the opening ceremony. It was organised vandalism and arson on several railway lines.

A map of today's sabotage of train lines in #France pic.twitter.com/13mP7pyvs5

— Michael A. Horowitz (@michaelh992) July 26, 2024

SNCF Réseau teams are “already on site to take stock and begin repairs,” but “this situation is expected to last at least until the weekend while repairs are carried out,” she said. This will affect 800,000 passengers, SNCF CEO Jean-Pierre Faradou explained at a press conference.

The attack came just hours before the opening ceremony of the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, and ahead of a weekend when large numbers of holidaymakers are expected, many returning from July holidays and many heading off on August vacations.

“We are rerouting some trains on classic lines, but we will have to cancel a large number of services,” – the SNCF statement said. It even said that the attacks had disrupted service between London and Paris. The Paris metro is also currently in “chaos”, with long delays and French police officers entering all carriages and searching for anything that might pose a threat.

Attaque massive visant la SNCF : un incendie volontaire sur une “artère de câbles” à Vandières paralyse le trafic des TGV Est
➡️ https://t.co/GlReKZpd54 pic.twitter.com/Civlx7Cevt

— France Bleu Lorraine Nord (@fblorrainenord) July 26, 2024

The disruptions began early in the morning and are related to sabotage on the country's railway network: “Tonight, SNCF carried out several malicious actions simultaneously on the LGV (high-speed trains) Atlantique, Nord and Est lines,” – the French railway company said in a statement. These were mainly “arson” with the aim of destroying the objects, the company explained. As a result, the movement of high-speed TGV trains on these three railway lines was “severely violated.”

Eurostar trains connecting Paris with London and Brussels were also affected, according to the company's online guide.All customers will be informed via SMS about the movement of their trains,”– the company explained to AFP. SNCF recommends “all travelers to postpone their trip and not go to the station.”

“Russian trace”? Earlier it was reported that the French authorities arrested “r“Russian agent”, 40-year-old Kirill Gryaznov, whose goal was nothing less than “destabilizing” the Paris Olympics. According to a spokesman for the French secret services, “Gryaznov got drunk and started telling strangers in a bar that Russia had sent him on a secret mission. French intelligence searched his apartment in Paris and found evidence to support his drunken claims.”

The Russian agent Kirill Gryaznov has been arrested in France after having been sent on a mission to “destabilize” the Paris Olympics.

Gryaznov got drunk and started telling strangers in bar that Russia had sent him for a secret mission.

French security services raided his… pic.twitter.com/LSOE7bUnC4

— Visegrad 24 (@visegrad24) July 26, 2024

“Nothing gave away the Russian intelligence officer in him: neither the Budyonovka, nor the radio on his back, nor the parachute dragging behind him, nor the Mauser dangling between his legs.”

As Le Monde, Der Spiegel and The Insider wrote in a joint investigation, an FSB ID was found in the detainee’s apartment. “Agent” revealed himself in May at the Bulgarian resort of Sveti Vlas. Drunk, he told people about his plans, waved his ID and called Russia. Based on this, the French secret services concluded that he was a Russian agent and was planning “disrupt the Olympics.”

Gryaznov studied law in Moscow and graduated with a master's degree in 2007. Three years later, he went to Paris to study to become a chef. Perhaps he was recruited back then. The man ran a culinary blog on Instagram, and he has more than 10,000 subscribers. He liked to pose in expensive clothes and took part in TV shows. “Choose Me” on “Home” and “Dachny Otvet” on NTV.

The short-sighted poser faces a 30-year sentence…

“We think he was going to organize operations of destabilization, interference, espionage, – Darmanin said in an interview with BFM TV channel. – He is now in the justice system, which will be able to confirm the police suspicions.”

Speaking about other alleged attempts to spread disinformation, the minister added: “We saw a video of someone from Hamas… announcing an attack in the next few days and coming because France is going to host Israeli athletes. We are not sure, but it looks like it is fake and it was spread by pro-Kremlin and pro-Russian channels.”

Paris prosecutors said the apartment of a Russian detained on Sunday was searched at the request of the French Interior Ministry. According to briefings provided to French media, agents found evidence that the man was preparing “large-scale project”which could have “serious” consequences over three weeks of games.

While the French secret services were proudly reporting (they probably already received medals, and not just one) for capturing an FSB special agent with an ID (probably bought in the metro), real terrorists attacked France. If there are saboteurs they won't findand this, judging by the quality of work of local law enforcement officers, is quite realistic, “all the dogs” will definitely be unleashed on Gryaznov.

After all, if you put on an NKGB officer’s cap, hold a machine gun and a pistol in front of a bust of Stalin, wave some kind of ID in Bulgaria and call Moscow, you are definitely not a clown spy.

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