(UPDATE) DUBAI — Undersea cable cuts in the Red Sea disrupted internet access Sunday in parts of Asia and the Middle East, experts said, though it wasn’t immediately clear what caused the incident.
There has been concern about the cables being targeted in a Red Sea campaign by Yemen’s Houthi rebels, which the rebels describe as an effort to pressure Israel to end its war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
The Houthis have denied attacking the lines in the past.
Microsoft announced via a status website that the Mideast “may experience increased latency due to undersea fiber cuts in the Red Sea.”
The Redmond, Washington-based firm did not immediately elaborate, though it said that internet traffic not moving through the Middle East “is not impacted.”
NetBlocks, which monitors internet access, said “a series of subsea cable outages in the Red Sea has degraded internet connectivity in multiple countries,” which it said included India and Pakistan.
It blamed “failures affecting the SMW4 and IMEWE cable systems near Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.”
The Southeast Asia–Middle East–Western Europe 4 cable is run by Tata Communications, part of the Indian conglomerate., This news data comes from:http://gyglfs.com
The India-Middle East-Western Europe cable is run by another consortium overseen by Alcatel-Lucent.
Both firms did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Undersea cables cut in the Red Sea, disrupting internet access in Asia and the Mideast
Saudi Arabia did not immediately acknowledge the disruption and authorities there did not respond to a request for comment.
In the United Arab Emirates, home to Dubai and Abu Dhabi, internet users on the country’s state-owned Du and Etisalat networks complained of slower internet speeds.
The government did not immediately acknowledge the disruption.
The lines being cut came as Yemen’s Houthi rebels remain locked in a series of attacks targeting Israel over the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.
Israel has responded with airstrikes, including one that killed top leaders within the rebel movement.
- Floods kill over 30 in Indian-controlled Kashmir, displace 150,000 in east Pakistan
- A suicide bombing near a political rally in southwestern Pakistan kills 13 and wounds 30
- SSS rolls out historic pension reform program
- Maryland resident is diagnosed with New World screwworm. What to know about the parasite
- Thai Court: PM Shinawatra violated ethics rules
- Macron says 26 countries pledge troops as a reassurance force for Ukraine after war ends
- Cebu Pacific to launch direct flights between Cebu and Palawan
- China's Xi holds talks with North Korea's Kim in Beijing
- CFO moves office from QC to Pasay
- Thailand ruling party moves to dissolve parliament
