How the Houthis could get revenge on the U.S. for airstrikes by cutting a FIFTH of the world's internet
Yemen government warns of threat to 'world's digital infrastructure'
By Nick Allen
Daily Mail
Feb 6, 2024
There are warnings Houthis could work pout a way to cut internet cables in the Red Sea carrying 17 percent of the world's web traffic; Some of the cables are only 328ft below the surface, sparking fears the Iran-backed group may be able to target them
Iranian-backed Houthi militants in Yemen could try to sabotage internet cables in the Red Sea carrying nearly one fifth of the world's web traffic, according to a spate of new warnings.
Yemen's government warned that the Red Sea is 'one of the three most important meeting points for cables' on the globe and the Houthis pose a 'serious threat to one of the most important digital infrastructures in the world.'
It came after a Houthi social media channel published a map showing the routes of various cables through the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, and the Arabian Sea.
The map was accompanied with the ominous message: 'It seems that Yemen is in a strategic location, as internet lines that connect entire continents - not only countries - pass near it.'
A map of underwater cables connecting the continents. There are growing fears Houthi militants could disrupt those passing through the Red Sea
A Houthi participate in a rally in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, and the recent Houthi strikes on shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden on February 4, 2024, on the outskirts of Sana'a, Yemen
The Houthis, who control swathes of Yemen, began attacking international shipping in the Red Sea on November 19 in support of Hamas in its war with Israel in Gaza.
Since then several dozen ships causing major disruptions to global trade, some 12 percent of which passes through the Red Sea.
The U.S. and U.K. have launched a massive airstrike campaign against them.
Now there are concerns the Houthis could respond by targeting the internet and transmission of financial data.
It is estimated that 17 percent of global internet traffic travels via underwater fiber optic cables in the Red Sea.
The average depth of the Red Sea is 450 meters but some are at depths of as little as 100 meters.
There are 16 cables passing through including a sprawling 15,000-mile long one called Asia Africa Europe-1 (AAE-1) which supplies broadband to Asia and Europe.
It connects a litany of countries including France, Italy and Greece, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia, India and Pakistan.
An undersea cable some of which are not much wider than a hosepipe and could be a target for Houthis
Houthis operating drones during a military exercise at a remote area on the outskirts of Sana'a, Yemen, 03 February 2024
Moammar al-Eryani, Yemen's information minister, said the Houthis were now making 'serious threats to the global communications sector and economy.'
He added: 'We are facing an unruly group, its terrorism has no ceiling or limits, and its crime exceeds all expectations.'
Yemen's General Telecommunications Company said it had in recent years urged global internet providers not to do anything that would enable the Houthis to get access to the cables or how they work.
In a statement on Monday it slammed Houthi 'threats to target international marine cables.'
Writing in Gulf Security Forum, Emily Milliken, lead analyst at Askari Defense and Intelligence near Washington DC, said the Houthi group 'may adjust its strategy to address a new - and perhaps more critical - target: the lattice of undersea telecommunications cables that line the Bab al-Mandab strait.'
The Bab al-Mandab, which in Arabic means 'Gate of Tears,' joins the southern Red Sea and the neighboring Gulf of Aden.
Underwater cables pass through the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden carrying 17 percent of the world's web traffic
An operator works during the mooring of an undersea fiber optic cable at Arrietara beach near the Spanish Basque village of Sopelana on June 13, 2017
Facebook developing a 23,000 mile long undersea cable to bring high speed internet to 16 poorly served countries in Africa and the Middle East
'So far, the cables have been kept safe more so by the Houthis’ relative technological underdevelopment than for a lack of motivation,' Milliken wrote. 'They lack the submersibles necessary to reach the cables.
'With sufficient time and opportunity, however, the Houthis might be able to adapt some of their maritime tactics to target the vital communication infrastructure.'
The shallow waters 'reduce the need for high-tech submarines to get the job done,' she wrote.
Even more concerning for Washington’s and its allies in the region severing the cables could 'cut off military or government communications.'
There is a precedent for attacks on submerged internet cables.
In 2013 Egypt's coastguard caught three divers cutting through a cable near the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria, causing major disruptions.
The Houthis have used an array of sophisticated weapons including ballistic missiles and 'kamikaze' drones in their attacks on international shipping in the Red Sea.
They are also known to have trained divers and are in possession of mines.
Wilson Jones, defense analyst at GlobalData, told the Airforce Technology website: 'Yemen is near a disproportionate number of international undersea internet cables, especially along its western coast where the Houthis have the greatest support.
“It would be very difficult to stop the Houthis if they made a determined effort to target these cables. A cut on a cable anywhere disrupts the flow of data everywhere. As these cables are essential for the modern internet and digital financial transactions, the disruption could be huge.”
He added: 'The Houthis certainly don’t have submarines but they could use some kind of depth charge, explosive or remote-controlled underwater mine, or send someone in scuba gear with wire cutters.'
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