Houthis deny responsibility for cutting Red Sea cables

SEVERAL underwater cables have been cut in the Red Sea, disrupting telecommunications networks in a key waterway that has been targeted by Yemen’s Houthi rebels.

Four of the 15 undersea cables in the area were cut, affecting about a quarter of traffic between Asia, the Middle East and Europe, according to a statement by HGC Global Communications, a Hong Kong-based internet service provider. HGC and other providers have been forced to reroute traffic, though the company did not say what caused the lines to be severed.

Lines impacted include the Asiaafrica-europe 1, the Europe India Gateway, Seacom and TGN-GULF, HGC said.

Concerns have been raised by Yemen’s internationally recognised government that the Houthis, who have seized control of much of the country in an ongoing civil war, would target the cables, which are considered strategic global infrastructure.

The militant group has launched a spate of attacks in the Red Sea during recent months that have disrupted global shipping. The Houthis, who say they are acting to pressure Israel to halt its war against Hamas in Gaza, have denied any responsibility for the damaged cables.

Underwater sea cables are what allow the world to get – and stay – online. They can be damaged unexpectedly in the event of natural disaster, and also accidentally by sea vessels.

“Initial testing indicates the affected segment lies within Yemeni maritime jurisdictions in the southern Red Sea,” Seacom told the Associated Press. It said it was rerouting the traffic where possible, though some services were down.

In recent years, concerns have grown that China could target Taiwan by severing the submarine cables with fishing trawlers and plunging part of the island into an internet blackout.

Experts have highlighted concerns that such a tactic could be used in modern warfare.

‘Initial testing indicates the affected segment lies within Yemeni maritime jurisdictions’