French rail SNCF sorry for 'racist' alert on Romanians

French national rail operator SNCF has apologised for a note that singled out Romanians over baggage thefts and triggered accusations of xenophobia.

The note asked employees to bring "all activities of Romanians" to the attention of rail security services. The note was distributed at the end of January in the Midi-Pyrenees region.



SNCF said the note was a "regrettable individual initiative" and had been recalled as soon as regional train officials learnt about it.

An SNCF spokesperson said that the official responsible for the note had been summoned along with their superiors, and had been reminded of the "obligations and culture of the SNCF".