Questions swirled after four cables were cut; some observers say it may be the Houthis, others say it was an accident.

  1. Four undersea telecommunication cables were cut in the Red Sea, disrupting 25% of data traffic between Asia and Europe.

  2. The cables are owned by private companies, with only about 1% owned by governments.

  3. If all cables in the Red Sea were taken out, it would disrupt Europe’s communication with India and East Asia, and North and East Africa.

  4. Officials are still investigating the cause of the cuts, with theories including an anchor or deliberate disruption.

  5. The Houthis have denied responsibility for cutting the cables, but some experts believe they could be capable of causing damage.

  6. There are about 380 undersea cables in operation worldwide, with a total length of over 1.2 million km.

  • sun_is_raEnglish
    343·
    7 months ago

    they have been very open about attacking ships, why would they deny cutting the cables if they did it?

    • BrokenGlepnir@lemmy.world
      13·
      7 months ago

      If they didn’t do it intentionally. One of the theories is that the ship they sank dragged its anchor across the cables. It can’t really be confirmed until the evidence has been collected, but it sounds plausible.

      • MarcoPOLO
        1·
        7 months ago

        Sinking ship drops anchor, propulsion system working fine?

    • ChicoSuave@lemmy.world
      3·
      7 months ago

      It’s one thing to shoot a missile with no training at a ship 20 miles away. It’s just point and click, the missile does most of the work.

      Cutting an undersea cable is an involved process that requires at least a functioning port, a boat with the equipment to trawl the bottom of the sea, and the ability to use it. There is a magnitude of ability difference between launching a missile off the back of a truck and cutting an undersea cable.