Red sea undersea cables cut: What damaged submarine cables & impacted internet? Here is what experts say

Internet services in parts of Africa, Asia and the Middle East have been disrupted after undersea cables in the Red Sea were cut, highlighting the vulnerability of the global network infrastructure just a year after a similar incident.As the news came to light, many are left wondering as to what may have cut the lines.According to experts, the cables were likely damaged by commercial shipping activity in the region.The International Cable Protection Committee (ICPC) told AP that 15 submarine cables pass through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the narrow waterway between East Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. This makes it one of the most critical and congested routes for global communications.Authorities identified damage to the South East Asia–Middle East–Western Europe 4, the India-Middle East-Western Europe and the FALCON GCX cables. By Tuesday, the Europe India Gateway cable was also confirmed to have been affected, according to Doug Madory, director of internet analysis at Kentik.Early reports indicated that the cables were cut near Jeddah in Saudi Arabia, though authorities and cable operators have not confirmed this.“Early independent analysis indicates that the probable cause of damage is commercial shipping activity in the region,” said John Wrottesley, the ICPC’s operations manager. “Damage to submarine cables from dragged anchors account for approximately 30% of incidents each year representing around 60 faults,” John added.Madory told the AP that as per experts a commercial ship likely dropped its anchor and dragged it across the four cables, cutting them. Because some sections of the Red Sea are shallow, anchors can more easily damage the lines. Undersea cables form a key part of the global internet system, alongside satellites and land networks, with providers usually rerouting traffic when one link goes down.The disruptions affected at least 10 countries, including India, Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates. While no nation went completely offline, internet providers lost significant portions of their international capacity.“Nobody’s completely offline, but each provider has lost a subset of their international transit,” Madory said. "So if you imagine this is like an equivalent to plumbing and you lose some volume of water coming down the pipes ... and now you just have less volumes to carry the traffic.”Undersea cables form the backbone of the internet, carrying most of the world’s data traffic. Providers usually reroute through alternative links when one line is damaged, but this often causes slower connections and latency, AP reported.The incident comes against the backdrop of security fears in the Red Sea, where Houthi rebel attacks on ships have raised concerns about risks to undersea infrastructure. Earlier in 2024, Yemen’s internationally recognised government in exile alleged that the Houthis planned to target cables. Several were later severed, possibly by a ship struck in one of the attacks dragging its anchor, though the Houthis denied responsibility.