The French government says several telecommunications lines have been hit by vandalism, affecting fibre optic lines and landline and mobile phone lines as cities across France host events for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
The extent of the impact is not known, nor is it known whether Olympic activities have been affected. The vandalism comes after an arson attack on rail networks in France on Friday, hours before the Olympic opening ceremony.
Marina Ferrari, Secretary of State for Digital Affairs, reported on X that damage in several regions on the night of Sunday to Monday affected telecommunications operators. She said this had localized repercussions on access to fiber optic lines and fixed and mobile telephone lines.
Organizers of the 2024 Paris Olympics declined to comment immediately.
A French police official said at least six French administrative departments were affected, including the region around the Mediterranean city of Marseille, which hosts the Olympic football and sailing competitions.
Telecom operators Bouygues and Free confirmed that their services were affected. According to French media, lines operated by the operator SFR were also affected. Free’s parent company said its teams were working to restore services.
A national investigation is underway into last week’s train sabotage that disrupted travel for nearly a million passengers in France, as well as people in London and other neighbouring countries. Rail traffic had largely resumed by Monday.
A far-left activist was arrested Sunday in a train station in Seine-Maritime, according to French media. The Paris prosecutor’s office, however, clarified that the case had no connection with the events that occurred on Friday and that no one had been arrested so far as part of the national investigation into arson.
France’s high-speed rail network was hit by widespread and “criminal” acts of vandalism on Friday, including arson attacks, paralysing travel to Paris.
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