Last months France and Germany have become mark of the coordinated series acts of rail sabotage which disrupted train traffic and caused anxiety among authorities and citizens. Attacks, attributed to utmost leftist groups, attracted media attention and sparked intense investigations.
France: Attacks just before the Olympics
In France, a series of arsons on high-speed TGV railway lines took place just a fewer hours before the beginning ceremony of the summertime Olympics in Paris. These attacks have caused serious disruption to rail traffic. The perpetrators are suspected to be utmost leftist groups who have been utilizing sabotage tactics for years as a form of protest against the state and capitalism.
The Minister of the Interior of France, Gérald Darmanin, called rail sabotage a "traditional method of operation" of those groups that frequently mark telecommunications and energy infrastructure. The French authorities are working intensively to identify the perpetrators, but no arrests have been made so far.
Anonymous email and cooperation with the FBI
The key component of the investigation is an anonymous email that was sent to the media the day after the attacks. Although it is unclear whether it comes from real saboteurs, its content is consistent with the anarchist ideology, criticizing the military and capitalist aspects of the French state.
French police requested aid from the FBI to identify an anonymous email sender. This email was sent from an address on Riseup.net platform, whose servers are located in the United States. Riseup is simply a collective offering communication services to groups fighting capitalism and another forms of oppression.
The French police have asked the FBI to press Riseup to disclose the details of the email account owner. However, according to the information on the Riseup website, this organization consistently refuses to share the data of its users, regardless of the nature of legal requests. In a 2020 interview for the Belarusian anarchist group Pramen, Riseup representatives confirmed that they never agreed to any abroad legal applications.
History of FBI cooperation with Riseup
However, in the past, the FBI has attempted to get data from Riseup. In 2012, national agents confiscated a server utilized by Riseup as part of an investigation into a bomb threat. In 2017, the organization reluctantly met 2 FBI requests to disclose the identity of accounts related to extortion cases.
Germany: akin attacks on railways
Similar incidents besides occurred in Germany, where groups of left-wing extremists set fire to railway cables in Bremen, Hamburg and Berlin. This sabotage has caused crucial disruption to rail traffic. As a result, hundreds of trains were delayed or cancelled.
Investigators are investigating a possible relation with cyber attacks on the Polish railway strategy in 2023, which, according to Polish intelligence services, could have been carried out by Russia. It is simply a pity that the services that defend the people who effort to destabilise the safety of Poland at all costs have forgotten to add that a group preparing to set fire to critical infrastructure in Poland has late been detained in Ukraine. The French authorities besides accuse Russia of moving a disinformation run to make chaos before the Olympics. In July, French police arrested a Russian citizen suspected of trying to destabilise the event.
International investigation and cooperation
Additionally, French investigators are investigating a possible link between the attacks on TGV and the sabotage of the telecommunications network, which occurred 2 days after the attacks on the railways. Although both incidents active the usage of incendiary materials, sources study that the materials utilized were different.
One of the leads investigated by the French police is besides the explosive found on the TGV line close Marseille on 8 May, the same day the Olympic torch reached the city. This material was almost identical to that utilized during the July 26 attacks.
The investigation shall besides include the verification of erstwhile employees of the French railway operator SNCF and subcontractors. However, as 1 origin notes, most of the cognition needed to carry out specified sabotage can easy be found online.
Anarchists and another far-left groups, according to experts, seldom search publicity or broad public support. They are usually loosely organized, without a formal hierarchical structure, making it hard to analyse and prosecute.
In the face of these events, the French and German authorities are cooperating powerfully to halt further attacks and identify the perpetrators. Both parties are besides considering steps at global level to strengthen anti-terrorism cooperation and prevent future sabotage incidents. At this point, cooperation was established with Italian and Spanish services.
Summary
The series of railway sabotages in France and Germany represents a major challenge for the safety services of both countries. highly left-wing groups, although operating without a formal structure, are able to carry out coordinated and effective attacks on critical infrastructure. In the face of the upcoming Olympic Games in Paris, the French authorities intensify their efforts to guarantee the safety and minimisation of the risks of further acts of sabotage. global cooperation, including with the FBI and Italian and Spanish services, may be crucial in identifying perpetrators and preventing future incidents.
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Bordered left liable for a series of railway sabotages in France and Germany
