Suspicion of sabotage Damaged rail tracks at the start of the Olympics cause unrest
Almost at the same time as the start of the Winter Games in northern Italy, there are incidents on various railroad lines. Is there a connection?
07.02.2026, 15:28
dpa
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- At the start of the Winter Olympics, damage was discovered on several railroad lines in northern Italy, leading to significant delays.
- These include an explosive device found on a switch, severed power cables and a fire in a power cabin.
- Investigators are looking into a possible sabotage connection and have called in anti-terror experts, also with a view to similar attacks during the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
At the start of the Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo, damage was discovered at three points on the Italian railroad network in the north of the country. Investigations are currently underway to determine whether there is a connection. According to a report by the Italian news agency Ansa, investigators are not ruling out the possibility of sabotage, as was the case at the start of the 2024 Summer Games in Paris. There were considerable delays.
According to the authorities, a "rudimentary explosive device" was found on a switch on the line between the major city of Bologna and Padua in the north. On the same line, it was discovered that power cables had been cut in a shaft. On the line between Bologna and Ancona, a power cabin caught fire near Pesaro station. The delays amounted to up to one and a half hours.
Anti-terror experts are also involved in the investigation, it was reported. At least in Pescara, it is suspected that the fire was started deliberately. In France, unknown persons carried out coordinated arson attacks on the TGV high-speed train network shortly before the opening of the Games in July 2024. Destroyed signaling systems and cables paralyzed three of the four main lines.
