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Anchor Suspected in Red Sea Cable Cuts That Slowed Internet Across Asia and the Gulf

A preliminary ICPC assessment points to a cargo ship’s lowered anchor as the likely cause, with repairs expected to take weeks as traffic is rerouted.

Bucht entlang der Küste des Roten Meeres vor Saudi-Arabien
Ein US-Marineschiff bei einem Einsatz im Roten Meer.

Overview

  • At least four major systems are down or damaged near Jeddah and the Bab al‑Mandab strait: SEAMEWE‑4 (SMW4), IMEWE, FALCON and the pe IndiIndia Gateway (EIG).
  • Network disruptions and slowdowns were reported in India, Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates, and Kuwait said the Falcon‑GCX cable was severed.
  • Microsoft said Azure traffic has been shifted to alternate paths, leading to higher latency for some users, including those whose routes traverse the Middle East.
  • Investigators say anchor strikes account for roughly 30% of subsea cable damage each year, and they are examining the incident after early speculation about Houthi sabotage.
  • Finding, retrieving and splicing the damaged fiber will require specialized repair ships, a process that can stretch from weeks to months on this critical Europe–Asia corridor.