Undersea cable cuts in the Red Sea near Jeddah have caused significant internet disruptions across Asia and the Middle East, impacting millions of users. These cuts affected major cable systems such as SMW4 and IMEWE, which are crucial for connecting continents via the Red Sea—a critical telecommunications route through which nearly 17% of the world’s internet data flows. The incident has led to slower connectivity and increased latency, especially affecting cloud and network services, with companies like Microsoft rerouting traffic through alternative routes to maintain service stability.
Repairing the damaged undersea cables poses considerable challenges. Specialized cable ships must be deployed to precisely locate and mend the cables resting deep on the ocean floor, a process that typically takes several weeks. The geopolitical sensitivity of the Red Sea region, compounded by ongoing Houthi rebel attacks in nearby waters, adds complexity and risk to repair efforts, highlighting the fragility of global internet infrastructure reliant on specific chokepoints for data traffic.
The Red Sea cable cuts underscore the vulnerability of the world’s digital backbone to both accidental incidents and geopolitical tensions. They reveal the urgent need for diversified and redundant infrastructure to ensure uninterrupted global connectivity, especially in strategically vital regions like the Middle East, where internet reliability is essential for business, government, and daily life.
Summary Pointers:
Undersea cable cuts near Jeddah disrupted internet connectivity widely across Asia and the Middle East due to damage to key cables SMW4 and IMEWE.
Repairing these cables is complex, requiring specialized ships and can take weeks amid geopolitical tensions and Houthi activities in the Red Sea.
The incident highlights dependency on fragile internet chokepoints and the necessity for diversified, resilient global digital infrastructure.
