Internet cable break in Red Sea, global impact

On March 4, CNN quoted Hong Kong telecommunications company HGC Global Communications as saying that cables belonging to four major telecommunications networks had been "broken", causing "significant" disruptions to communications networks in the Middle East.

HGC estimates that 25% of traffic between Asia and Europe and the Middle East has been affected. It is rerouting traffic to minimize disruption and “extending support to affected businesses,” it said.

However, HGC did not say how the cable was damaged and who was responsible.

Among the affected networks was Asia-Africa-Europe 1, a 25,000km cable system that connects Southeast Asia to Europe via Egypt. The Europe-India Gateway (EIG), Europe, the Middle East and India, was also damaged, according to CNN.

Undersea cables are the lifeblood of the Internet, and Internet giants like Google, Microsoft, Amazon, and Facebook parent company Meta have all made huge investments in them over the years.

Damage to these undersea networks could cause widespread Internet disruptions, as happened after the 2006 Taiwan earthquake.

Most major telecommunications companies rely on multiple undersea cable systems.

However, the cable network allows them to reroute traffic in the event of an outage to ensure uninterrupted service.

The damage to the Red Sea cables comes weeks after Yemeni authorities officially warned that the Houthi rebels controlling the country would target submarine cables.

Last week, Israeli news site Globes also claimed that the Houthis were behind the cable sabotage, but the group denied the accusation.

Meanwhile, the Yemeni government has blamed British and US forces operating in the area for causing the damage.