Italian police arrested seven people in an investigation into high-speed railway sabotage during the Milano-Cortina Winter Olympic Games
Italian police carried out a new major counterterrorism operation connected with attacks on railway infrastructure during the Milano-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games. According to a statement by the Polizia di Stato and information reported by Reuters, seven people are suspected of participating in an anarchist militant network, and the investigation focuses on sabotage of the Roma-Firenze high-speed line and related attacks that caused disruptions in railway traffic in February.
Seven precautionary measures in the investigation by the Rome prosecutor's office
According to the announcement by the Italian state police, members of Rome's Digos, a specialized police service for general investigations and special operations, executed seven judicial measures at the request of the Rome prosecutor's office. The judge for preliminary investigations ordered prison detention for five suspects, while two people were placed under house arrest. Italian authorities state that the proceedings are being conducted on suspicion of association for terrorist purposes and subversive action against the democratic order. At this stage, these are suspicions and investigative actions, and final criminal responsibility can be established only in court proceedings.
The Rome prosecutor's office, according to reports by Italian media citing investigative sources, accuses the group of operating in the form of a clandestine structure inspired by the anarcho-insurrectionist milieu. According to the AGI agency, investigators claim that the network was rooted in Rome, but that it maintained contacts with like-minded people in other Italian urban areas, including Bologna, Forlì-Cesena, Milano and Napoli. At the same time, police also carried out multiple searches against other persons under investigation, and Italian sources state that the Roman anarchist space Bencivenga Occupato was also included. The scope of these searches shows that the authorities are treating the case not only as an isolated attack on the transport network, but as part of a broader security investigation.
The attack of 14 February and damage estimated at 455,000 euros
The central part of the investigation concerns an attack carried out on 14 February 2026 on the railway infrastructure of the Roma-Firenze high-speed line. According to the Polizia di Stato, two people among those arrested are specifically accused of participating in that attack, in which improvised explosive devices were used. Investigators state that these devices were rudimentary, but effective enough to cause serious damage to the system. The estimated cost of restoring the infrastructure, according to the same police statement and Reuters reports, amounts to 455,000 euros.
The attack occurred at a time when Italy was hosting the Milano-Cortina Winter Olympic Games, which, according to the International Olympic Committee, were held from 6 to 22 February 2026. During that period, transport links between major Italian cities and Olympic areas had increased importance, not only for passengers and fans but also for the broader functioning of public services. According to Italian railway and media reports from February, disruptions on the Roma-Napoli and Roma-Firenze lines led to delays, reroutings and cancellations of certain trains. ANSA reported at the time on delays reaching more than two hours, while other sources also cited significant chain disruptions on the network.
RaiNews, citing information from Rete Ferroviaria Italiana, reported that one incident on the Roma-Napoli line was recorded between Salone and Labico, where technicians found damage to cable ducts and burned cables for traffic control. The second case concerned the Roma-Firenze line, between Roma Tiburtina and Settebagni, where burned cables were also found. This type of damage is particularly sensitive because it does not relate only to the tracks, but also to signaling and control elements that enable traffic to operate safely. Because of this, even a relatively localized attack can affect a large number of journeys and the wider train schedule.
Authorities speak of politically motivated sabotage
According to police statements reported by Reuters, the attack on the Roma-Firenze line and the simultaneous attack on the Roma-Napoli line were later claimed on the website ispiraazione.noblogs.org. Police claim that the site had been created several months earlier and that the published text explicitly linked the sabotage with the staging of the Milano-Cortina Winter Olympic Games. In the same context, according to police statements, antimilitarist motives and the idea of a violent attack on infrastructure are mentioned.
Italian authorities therefore view the case through the framework of terrorism and subversion, not only through the framework of a property-related criminal offense or an ordinary interruption of a public service. According to AGI, two suspects are additionally strongly implicated in an attack on public-utility facilities, interruption of a public service and incitement to commit a criminal offense, with the aggravating circumstance of terrorist purpose. Such a qualification reflects the investigators' assessment that the goal was not only the physical damage of cables or facilities, but the creation of disruption in a public system at a politically sensitive moment.
Reuters also reported that police see links in the case with other cells in several cities, while one longer statement, published on the site cited by investigators, also mentioned responsibility for the sabotage of the Transalpine Pipeline in March. These claims are not in themselves judicially established facts, but they are important for understanding why Italian security services are conducting the investigation as a potentially broader network. In publicly available information there is no confirmation that the full cycle of checks on all the stated claims has been completed, which is why part of the context must still be treated as the subject of investigation.
Reactions from the political leadership and the security context of the Games
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni welcomed the police operation. According to Reuters, on the social network X she assessed that the operation had dealt a heavy blow to those who, in her words, want to endanger state security, attack strategic infrastructure and call into question the principles of democratic coexistence. Her reaction fits into a broader political context in which attacks on the railway network during the Olympic Games were presented as a threat to Italy's international image and to the security of a major sporting event.
Associated Press reported during the first days of the Games that the Ministry of Transport had opened an investigation into possible terrorism after synchronized sabotage of railway lines in northern Italy, while thousands of passengers were affected by delays lasting several hours. The same source also described separate protests in Milano against parts of the Olympic project, emphasizing that most of the demonstrations were peaceful, while a smaller group took part in clashes with police. For the security services, it is crucial to distinguish lawful protest from violent attacks on infrastructure, and the International Olympic Committee stressed at the time that peaceful protest has its place, but that violence has no place at the Olympic Games.
Italy's Ministry of the Interior announced ahead of the Games that the Viminale, prefectures and police forces were included in a special security framework for the Olympic and Paralympic competitions. According to official ministry announcements, security planning included coordination of several institutions, management of major events, mobility, airspace restrictions and special measures in competition areas. In one of the reports after a meeting of the national committee for public order and security, it was stated that about 6,000 members of the national security apparatus were included in the security system. The attacks on railway infrastructure showed how much transport systems are an important part of the security architecture of major international events.
Railway as strategic infrastructure
High-speed railway lines in Italy connect political, economic and tourist centers and play an important role in passengers' daily movement. The Roma-Firenze line is part of a key north-south transport corridor, while Roma-Napoli is used to connect the capital with southern Italy. When signal cables, cable ducts or control elements are damaged, the consequences do not stop at the site of the attack. Operators must limit speed, reroute trains, wait for police inspections to be completed and only then allow technicians to begin full repairs. Precisely for this reason, delays can spread through the network and affect passengers who were not in the immediate vicinity of the damaged section.
According to Italian reports from February, the events on the Roma-Napoli and Roma-Firenze lines occurred in the early morning hours, before traffic reached full daily intensity. Nevertheless, the consequences were felt for hours. RaiNews reported that restoration of infrastructure on one section was completed only after the competent authorities had carried out an on-site inspection, while additional technical action was needed for the other section. Such a sequence shows that the security response to sabotage includes two levels: first the criminal and technical examination of the incident site, and then the operational return of traffic to normal mode.
For passengers, such events most often appear as delays, cancellations and route changes, but for institutions they represent a test of the resilience of the entire system. If an attack occurs during an international sporting event, an additional problem is the need to preserve the safety of athletes, spectators, volunteers and employees who rely on public transport. That is why Italian reactions often used the formulation of strategic infrastructure. It denotes systems whose damage can have consequences far beyond the material damage itself.
The broader anarcho-insurrectionist framework
According to AGI, investigators in this case are also examining the broader mobilization of the anarcho-insurrectionist milieu, including opposition to the 41-bis regime applied to prisoner Alfredo Cospito. The 41-bis regime in Italy is a strict prison regime intended to prevent prisoners from communicating with criminal or terrorist networks, and its application in Cospito's case had already previously sparked protests and debates among groups opposing the state's repressive apparatus. In this case, according to available information, investigators are examining whether that mobilization was connected with violent action against public infrastructure.
It is important to emphasize that the existence of a political or ideological position is not in itself a criminal offense. The criminal-law interest of the authorities in this case is directed at the suspicion that individuals organized or supported violent actions that could have endangered public safety and the functioning of basic services. It is precisely along this boundary between political activism, radical propaganda and a physical attack on infrastructure that the key part of the legal proceedings will unfold. The defense of the suspects, if it challenges the allegations of the prosecution, will have the opportunity to present its arguments before the competent court.
The investigation continues after the arrests
The operation of 16 June 2026 does not mark the end of the proceedings, but a new phase in which prosecutors will seek to connect the collected evidence, search results and digital traces with concrete actions of the suspects. According to Reuters, Rome prosecutors also issued additional search warrants against other persons under investigation in several Italian cities. This points to continued checks into possible logistical support, communications and the possible expansion of the network beyond the persons already covered by precautionary measures.
For Italian institutions, the case remains important even after the end of the Olympic Games because it concerns the question of protecting infrastructure that carries a large share of public and economic traffic every day. For the public, it is equally important that the investigation be conducted with respect for the presumption of innocence and a clear distinction between proven facts, police claims and media interpretations. At present, measures against seven people, suspicions of terrorist association and a link with the attack on the Roma-Firenze line have been confirmed, while the final judicial outcome will depend on the evidence that the competent authorities present in the further proceedings.
Sources:
- Polizia di Stato – statement on the arrest of seven people and allegations about the attack on the Roma-Firenze high-speed line (link)
- Questura di Roma / Polizia di Stato – details on precautionary measures, damage to infrastructure and related searches (link)
- Reuters via Internazionale – report on the arrests, accusations, reaction by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and the connection with the Olympic Games (link)
- AGI – report on the investigation by the Rome prosecutor's office, classifications of criminal offenses and allegations about an anarcho-insurrectionist network (link)
- ANSA – report of 14 February 2026 on sabotage, delays and interruptions on high-speed lines (link)
- RaiNews – data on technical damage on the Roma-Napoli and Roma-Firenze lines and RFI interventions (link)
- Associated Press – report on protests, sabotage and the security context during the first days of the Games (link)
- International Olympic Committee / Olympics.com – official data on the duration and scope of the Milano-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games (link)
- Ministry of the Interior of Italy – official information on security planning for Milano-Cortina 2026 and the involvement of the security apparatus (link)