Paris, Nov 10 (IANS) French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot has accused Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) for the cyberattacks on French supermarket fridges on the night of October 11-12, a report has claimed.
Speaking after a G7 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Paris, Barrot said that that Iran’s ambassador to France has been summoned. He further said that France would impose sanctions against those responsible and take measures that they deem necessary to respond to these attacks.
In a statement shared on X, Barrot said, “On October 11 and 12, nearly 700 distribution sites were hit by a cyber campaign of unprecedented scale and aggression. Today, thanks to the work of government agencies, we know who is responsible: the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of the Islamic Republic of Iran.”
“Iran’s ambassador has been summoned. We will sanction those responsible and take all measures we deem necessary and proportionate to respond to these attacks and deter anyone who might consider repeating them,” he added.
Refrigeration units in more than 700 French retailers, including Carrefour, Monoprix, Intermarche and Cooperative U, were targeted on October 11-12. The attackers manually overrode temperature of fridge. Euro News reported.
Meanwhile, French Foreign Affairs Ministry said that cyberattacks caused “significant material damage, including fires, and the estimated loss of food and other goods amounting to tens of millions of euros.”
The ministry said that the cyberattacks were a major threat to the interests of France and the security of French nationals, Euro News reported.
French authorities said that this was not the first time France was targeted by Iran with “destabilisation acts”, citing a hack on satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo in 2023 and hostile actions during the 2024 Olympic Games.
The European Union (EU) Foreign Policy chief Kaja Kallas said that the upcoming Foreign Affairs Council meeting on November 16 would provide an opportunity to discuss cyberattacks taking place in Europe.
She said, “If they are attributed, our response should be stronger.”
–IANS
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