Philippe Boutron and Mayeul Barbet race in 2020 Dakar Rally. (Reuters)
PARIS – An explosion under a support vehicle at the Dakar Race in Saudi Arabia that injured French driver Philippe Boutron on December 30 was caused by an improvised explosive device, a French source familiar with the matter said. with the investigation said Friday.
Confirming the RTL report, the source told Reuters that investigators had found traces of explosives on Boutron’s wrecked vehicle in Saudi Arabia.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said there was suspicion of a terrorist attack, but Saudi Arabia’s foreign ministry said on Wednesday that the initial investigation into the explosion had not yielded any information. suspect any crime.
A second explosion at the Dakar rally, under a vans of Camelia Liparoti’s team on December 31, is also under investigation by French police. French radio station RMC said the truck’s driver heard a “boom” before the fire broke out.
French counter-terrorism prosecutors have opened a preliminary investigation into the January explosion. French radio RMC reported that a team including French DGSI secret service agents and an investigative judge had arrived in Saudi Arabia, where the protest was held, for several days. They also questioned witnesses in France when they returned from Saudi Arabia.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said at the time that “there are theories” that the incident “was a terrorist attack”.
Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Ministry said on January 8 that the initial investigation into the first explosion did not raise any criminal suspicions. But French authorities said Saudi Arabia was cooperating with the investigation.
The Dakar Rally was originally a race from Paris to Dakar, Senegal, but it was moved to South America for 2009-2019 because of the political unrest in Africa. It was again shipped to Saudi Arabia in 2020.
