Intelligence agencies urgently probing if Putin's spies are behind Paris Olympics arson attack

Intelligence agencies are investigating whether Russia has anything to do with the arson attack against Paris, the Mirror reported.

It comes after the French authorities confirmed that the country's rail systems had been sabotaged in a “malicious act of vandalism.”

Officials earlier stressed that that coordinated incidents had taken place at several railway stations, where cables were set on fire.

Police and intelligence agencies will already have suspects, possibly anarchists, terrorists, French protestors - or more crucially, a malicious state actor.

Inevitably, against a backdrop of European support for Ukraine, Moscow’s GRU intelligence agency will be suspects. The attacks are straight out of the playbook of the so-called "deadly quartet" of Russia, China, Iran and North Korea.

They could be the result of a murky merging of the criminal underworld and hostile state actors, with Russia controlling events from the shadows. It is entirely possible the GRU backed local anarchists or criminals or eastern European agents living in France to launch the attacks.

This could be a gesture, a warning from a country such as Russia in response to European backing of Ukraine. If it is Russia employing or encouraging anarchists, they have the same desired outcome.

Their intentions and wishlist would merge - discredit the government, massively disrupt society, cost France dearly and issue an arm’s length threat. There will be the usual denials from Moscow or elsewhere.

With all the security arrangements to secure the Olympics it is possible covert operators decided this was the best way to attack them.

This was a physically unsophisticated operation, although psychologically it has been devastating for France and has massively undermined the government which is so invested in it.

French sports minister Amelie Ouda-Castera said: "It's probably a large-scale sabotage. We are not going to let ourselves be destabilised by this."

This is the language used by someone who already suspects a state act of espionage and asked if it was that or terror she said: "Probably." But it is entirely possible this will turn out to be attacks encouraged, backed, planned, or paid for by a foreign intelligence agency such as the GRU.