Internet services were disrupted in many parts of Asia and the Middle East on Sunday. Experts said that this problem was caused by the cutting of the undersea internet cables in the Red Sea. However, the reason behind this incident could not be immediately clear. In view of the ongoing regional conflict, sabotage is suspected, but it has not been confirmed.
Microsoft said on its status website that internet services may be delayed due to the cutting of undersea fiber in the Middle East. However, the company also clarified that there was no impact on the internet outside the region. Netblocks, a global monitoring organization, said that several submarine cables have been disrupted in the Red Sea.
Due to which the internet connectivity of many countries including India, Pakistan was affected. Netblocks said that South East Asia–Middle East–Western Europe 4 (SMW4) and India-Middle East-Western Europe (IMEWE) cable systems have been affected in this incident. This cut took place near Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
SMW4 is operated by Tata Communications, while IMEWE is operated by an international consortium under the supervision of Alcatel-Lucent. Both the companies have not yet commented. Pakistan Telecommunications Company Limited (PTCL) confirmed these cuts on Saturday. At the same time, users of Du and Etisalat networks in the United Arab Emirates also complained of slow internet speed, although the government there or Saudi Arabia did not respond to this.
Experts say that undersea cables are the backbone of the global internet infrastructure and can be affected by ships’ anchors or deliberate attacks. Repairing such cables can take weeks and requires the help of special ships.
This disruption has come at a time when Yemen’s Houthi rebels are continuously carrying out attacks related to the Israel-Hamas war in the Red Sea. However, the Houthis have denied responsibility for the incident. Houthi-controlled channel Al-Masirah confirmed the outage, citing a Netblocks report, but did not admit any role. In the past year, Houthi fighters have attacked more than 100 ships with missiles and drones, sinking four ships and killing at least eight sailors. Yemen’s recognized government accused the Houthis of planning attacks on internet cables earlier this year, which they rejected.
