Damage to submarine cables in the Red Sea is disrupting telecommunications networks and forcing providers to reroute as much as a quarter of traffic between Asia, Europe and the Middle East, including internet traffic.
Cables belonging to four major telecoms networks have been “cut” causing “significant” disruption to communications networks in the Middle East, according to Hong Kong telecoms company HGC Global Communications.
HGC estimates that 25% of traffic between Asia and Europe as well the Middle East has been impacted, it said in a statement Monday.
The cause is not yet clear.
The US official said it was trying to find out whether the cables were cut deliberately or snagged by an anchor.
Seacom’s chief digital officer Prenesh Padayachee said acquiring permits from the Yemeni maritime authority to repair the cables could take up to eight weeks. “Client traffic will continue to be rerouted until we are able to repair the damaged cable,” he added.
