- ‘Ultra-left’ activist was reportedly arrested at a railway site after Friday’s attacks
Fibre optic networks have been ‘sabotaged’ in several parts of France, according to police, as an arrest has been made in the wake of arson attacks on the country’s rail network.
Coordinated arson attacks paralysed high-speed train services on Friday, hours before the Olympics opening ceremony, disrupting travel for hundreds of thousands of people.
An ultra-left activist was arrested at a railway site yesterday, according to a police source, with investigators looking into whether the man belongs to an ‘anti-Olympics’ movement.
The latest alleged acts of vandalism have hit fibre optic installations in six areas of France, including near Paris, where the games are largely being hosted, police said.
Cables were reportedly cut in electrical cabinets belonging to telephone operators SFR and Bouygues.
Pedestrians walk past a French telecommunications and mobile network operator company SFR shop (file image)
Charred cables near a railway line in Courtalain after reports of ‘arson’ attacks on rail infrastructure on Friday
‘Outages’ affected landlines rather than mobile lines overnight, according to information obtained by French daily paper Le Parisien.
The report said that infrastructure in southern France, the Meuse region near Luxembourg and the Oise area near Paris had been vandalised.
The French capital is said to have not been affected by the attacks as it stands.
There has so far been no claim of responsibility and and the number of people affected is not yet known.
SFR and Bouygues did not immediately respond to requests for comment.