© Julien De Rosa/Getty ImagesFILE:
A bomb threat has reportedly led to the evacuation
of Gare du Nord, a major Paris train station, just minutes after a Franco-Swiss airport was closed due to security concerns. The entire station perimeter has been cordoned off amid the bomb scare.
Local journalist Jean-Baptiste Marty reported that
"two suspicious packages" were found at the rail hub. It comes after lines were sabotaged ahead of the opening ceremony. Writing on X, he added, "A bomb threat is in progress at Gare du Nord in Paris. The entire perimeter around the station and within the station is cordoned off."
According to the French media outlet Actu17,
two calls were made warning of bombs at the station. Meanwhile, Basel-Mulhouse airport, near the Swiss border, experienced a bomb scare, prompting an evacuation of travellers.
Initially, Basel-Mulhouse EuroAirport announced on its website, "For safety reasons, the terminal had to be evacuated and is currently closed." However, the airport
has since reopened, and flights are gradually resuming.
This incident
occurred just hours after the French rail network suffered major delays due to a coordinated arson attack. Travelers at Basel-Mulhouse airport can breathe a sigh of relief, as a new statement announced, "The airport has reopened and flight operations are gradually restarting. Passengers are requested to contact their airline for information about their flight."
According to news agency Reuters, French police confirmed that a bomb scare prompted the evacuation. Air France also reported that its flights were grounded due to the threat.
Images circulating on social media depict travellers waiting outside the airport with their luggage. A massive security operation has been initiated across Paris,
involving 45,000 police officers and 18,000 soldiers patrolling the streets,
ahead of the opening ceremony on Friday.
This marks the largest deployment of French troops since World War II.
Comment: Ham & High reports on the arson:
Arson attacks paralyse French high-speed rail network hours before Olympics
High-speed rail services to Paris have been severely disrupted by what officials described as "criminal actions" and sabotage, hours before the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games.
The incidents paralysed several high-speed lines linking the French capital to the rest of France and to neighbouring countries, according to transport minister Patrice Vergriete.
Speaking on BFM television, he described people fleeing from the scene of fires and the discovery of incendiary devices, adding: "Everything indicates that these are criminal fires."
As Paris authorities geared up for a parade along the Seine River amid tightened security for Paris 2024, three fires were reported near the tracks on the high-speed lines of Atlantique, Nord and Est.
The disruption particularly affected Paris's major Montparnasse station. Videos posted on social networks showed the hall of the station saturated with passengers.
The Paris police prefecture "concentrated its personnel in Parisian train stations" after the "massive attack" that paralysed the TGV high-speed network, Laurent Nunez, the city police chief, told France Info television.
Travel to and from London beneath the English Channel, to neighbouring Belgium, and across the west, north, and east of France was affected by what the national rail company SNCF called a series of co-ordinated overnight incidents.
SNCF said areas affecting rail track intersections were intentionally targeted by the arsonists to double the impact.
"For one fire, two destinations were hit," said chief executive Jean-Pierre Farandou.
It was "a premeditated, calculated, co-ordinated attack" that indicates "a desire to seriously harm" the French people, he added.
Government officials denounced the acts, though they said there was no immediate sign of a direct link to the Olympics.
The Paris prosecutor's office has opened an investigation, being led by the National Jurisdiction for the Fight against Organised Crime.
Passengers at St Pancras station in London were warned to expect delays of around an hour to their Eurostar journeys. Announcements in the departure hall at the international terminus informed travellers heading to Paris that there was a problem with overhead power supplies.
The attacks occurred against a backdrop of global tensions and heightened security measures as the city prepared for the Games. Many people were planning to converge on the capital for the opening ceremony, and many holidaymakers were also in transit.
SNCF said it did not know when traffic would resume and feared that disruption would continue "at least all weekend".
Valerie Pecresse, president of the regional council of the greater Paris region, said "250,000 travellers will be affected today on all these lines". Substitution plans are under way but she advised travellers "not to go to stations".
Times of Israel reports on the threat against the President:
French police said probing threat against Herzog ahead of Olympics opening ceremony
French police are investigating a person who threatened on social media to attack President Isaac Herzog at the Paris Olympics, French newspaper L'Équipe reported Friday.
According to the report, authorities were alerted to the threat via the French government's Pharos website, on which users can report illegal online content.
The threat was posted to X, formerly Twitter, from the Val-de-Marne region southeast of Paris, and is being investigated by the anti-terrorism unit of the regional police, the newspaper said.
In a briefing on Friday cited by the Ynet news site, Herzog said he "has a lot of trust in the security infrastructure of the French and of the other states there, and also on the Olympic Committee, which has made an enormous effort."
Herzog was preparing to participate in Friday's Olympics opening ceremony after attending a reception with French President Emmanuel Macron, where he thanked his French counterpart for the warm welcome.
"I appreciate your work in the fight against antisemitism and your contribution to ensuring the ability of the excellent Israeli delegation to compete with respect and fairness in the Olympic Games," Herzog told Macron, according to a statement from the president's office.
Concerns for the safety of the Israeli delegation and Israeli tourists have peaked in recent days.
On Thursday, a hacker group calling itself "Zeus" published the personal information of Israeli athletes, in an attack Israeli authorities believe to have been orchestrated by Iran.
On Wednesday, Herzog himself was ordered to stay on his plane for an extra 40 minutes after landing in Paris due to security concerns sparked by a suspicious figure on a nearby rooftop.
Antisemitic attacks have soared in France since the attack, and French police have made several arrests on terrorism charges in recent months.
Israel's 88 athletes' security detail comprises both French officers and Shin Bet agents.
A French diplomatic source told the Ynet news site that France's "intelligence and security services are working actively to locate the perpetrators of criminal acts and bring them to justice."
"At the same time, we are aware of the threats to Israeli athletes," said the source. "The French authorities, the delegations and the citizens of the state of Israel will receive the highest level of security coverage possible."
Hostage families' anger
Meanwhile, the relatives of hostages held in Gaza since Hamas's October 7 reacted angrily to comments President Isaac Herzog made to Israeli athletes on Thursday.
The president told the Israeli delegation in Paris that perhaps "somewhere out there in Gaza, it could be that one of the hostages will see you for a second, and you will give them strength... this year we want to see the flag of Israel in every arena everywhere in the world."
Einav Zangauker, whose son was kidnapped from his home on Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7 and is still held in Gaza, demanded Herzog take action to bring the hostages home rather than using them in a pep talk.
"Instead of going to warm the hearts of the athletes, I demand you do your job and take care of the return of the hostages via the deal on the table, which the prime minister continues to torpedo," Zangauker said.
"President Herzog, Matan's heart does not warm to see the president of the country normalizing the holding of hostages for the benefit of the Olympics, and the same goes for the women who are being sexually abused and all the other captives," she said.
Responding to the criticism, Herzog's office said Friday that the president's comments were taken out of context.
"The president was speaking about the mental strength of the athletes and the souls of the hostages who we can't forget for a moment — even on the world stage of the Olympics," read a statement from his office.
The president also reiterated the need to reach a deal to bring the hostages home as soon as possible, the statement added.
Considering the West-Israel's escalation of chaos creation on the geopolitical stage, this all seemed rather predictable. And there were incidents in the run up to the opening day which were similarly foreboding. It also seems likely that there will be more incidents of note before the games are over:
And perhaps the government should start paying attention to the affairs of their nation, not the affairs of other nations.