Three submarine cables in the Red Sea, which provide internet and telecommunications to the entire world, continue to be targeted by Yemen's Houthi rebels along that sea route, the agency responsible said today.
In a statement, Hong Kong-based HGC Global Communications acknowledged the cuts but did not say what caused them.
The cables have raised concerns that the Houthis are targeting a campaign the rebels describe as an attempt to pressure Israel to end its war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip. However, the Houthis deny attacking the cables.
While global shipping through the Red Sea, a vital route for transporting goods and energy from Asia and the Middle East to Europe, is already disrupted, the sabotage of telecommunications links could worsen the long-term crisis.
HGC Global Communications reported that the lines of Asia-Africa-Europe 1, Europe India Gateway, Seacom and TGN-Gulf were cut.
The company indicated that 25% of traffic crossing the Red Sea was affected by the cuts, which it described as “crucial” for data transmission from Asia to Europe.
HGC Global Communications, which said it has already begun rerouting traffic, described the Seacom-TGN-Gulf route as two separate cables, when in fact it is one in the cut zone, according to cable expert Tim Strank. Submarines of Telegeography, a Washington-based telecommunications market research firm.
Responding to questions from The Associated Press (AP), Seacom said initial tests indicated the affected area was in Yemen's territorial waters, in the southern Red Sea, and that it was diverting traffic, however it was able to be diverted. Some services were inactive.
Tata Communications, part of the Indian conglomerate responsible for the Seacom-TGN-Gulf line, told AP it had “initiated immediate and appropriate corrective measures” following the tax cut, investing in several cable consortiums to overhaul services.
In early February, Yemen's internationally recognized government in exile warned that the Houthis planned to attack the cables. The lines appeared to have been cut on February 24, with the NetBlocks system detecting disruptions to internet access in the East African country of Djibouti two days later. Seacom serves Djibouti.
But for their part, the Hputhis denied targeting the cables and blamed British and US military operations for the interceptions, though, as they have done in the past, they did not present evidence to support the claim.
“Battles by British and US naval forces in Yemen have disrupted submarines in the Red Sea, jeopardizing the security of international communications and the normal flow of information,” the Houthi-controlled Ministry of Transport said. in Yemen's rebel-held capital, Sana'a.
Since November, rebels have repeatedly attacked ships in the Red Sea and surrounding waters because of the war between Israel and Hamas. Those ships included at least one with cargo destined for Iran, the Houthis' main backer, and an aid ship that later went to Yemen.
Despite more than a month and a half of US-led airstrikes, the Houthis have continued to carry out significant attacks, including in February on the fertilizer cargo ship Rubymar, which sank on Saturday. Several days, and a multi-million dollar North American 'drone' (unmanned aerial vehicle) was shot down.
The Houthis insist their attacks will continue until Israel ends its military operations in the Gaza Strip, which have angered the wider Arab world and won international recognition for the rebels.
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