High-speed Thalys and Eurostar international rail services were disrupted Monday after signalling cables were deliberately set on fire between Brussels and the French city of Lille, the Belgian railway operator said.
Infrabel spokesman Frederic Sacre said however there was no attempt to derail a train on the line serving the Belgian capital, Paris and London, a point he stressed amid a climate of fear over terrorist attacks.
“No train left Brussels for Lille and no train has left Lille for Brussels,” Sapre told AFP.
“At first we thought it was cable theft but that is not the case. It was a deliberate act targeting the signal system,” Sapre said.
Cables were set on fire in four different places near the town of Ath, close to the French border, he added.
“This has not caused any danger — when the signalling does not work, there is no traffic.”
“Prosecutors are at the scene, the police too are collecting evidence,” Sapre said, adding that services were likely to be halted until at least early afternoon.