Terrorists tried to cripple the City of Light on the day of the Opening Ceremonies at the Summer Olympics in Paris by
setting coordinated fires in
an attempt to disrupt the high-speed railroad system in France.
Similar to the recent worldwide
technology outage, travel disturbances can be an effective means of disruption.
It was estimated that almost 800,000
people were affected, including some athletes trying to get into the city of
Paris for the opening ceremonies. There were no deaths or injuries reported.
French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal described
the attacks as “premeditated” and “calculated.”
“Disturbing such a festival of peace with
acts of violence can never be accepted and demands the most determined
rejection,” German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said.
Most of the railroad system was expected
to be restored Saturday. France was expecting
15 million visitors for the Olympics.
Also on Friday, a small suburban French
airport was briefly evacuated and it is unknown whether it is connected to the
railroad attacks.
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