Houthi rebels destroy underwater cables linking Europe to Asia in latest act of sabotage
Houthi rebels in Yemen have knocked out a series of underwater cables over the past few months — causing major communication disruptions between Europe and Asia, a report said.
The Iranian-backed militia — who launched a missile attack on a British-owned cargo ship in the Gulf of Aden last week — damaged four submarine communication cables in the Red Sea between Saudi Arabia and Djibouti in East Africa, according to Israeli outlet Globes.
Yemen’s government warned this month that the Houthis were seeking to sabotage crucial infrastructure, including the internet cables in the Red Sea.
The group has been determined to retaliate following near-daily strikes by the US to destroy rebel drone launch sites amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas.
The cables reportedly belong to the companies AAE-1, Seacom, EIG, and TGN. The damage is not considered critical because some cables have not been attacked.
EIG (European India Gateway) connects Southern Europe with Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Djibouti, the UAE and India. The utility’s underwater cable was laid at a cost of $700 million and was the first cable stretching from the UK to India, according to Globes.
The TGN Atlantic cable was sold to Indian company Tata Communications in 2005 for $130 million. The AAE-1 has a 40-terabyte-per-second capacity and links China with the West via Pakistan and Qatar. The Seacom cable links Europe, Africa and India as well as South Africa.
Dangerous repairs
Restoring the undersea equipment could take weeks and would come at a high risk as the rebels continue to launch attacks. Over the weekend, US and British forces struck 18 Houthi targets in Yemen in response to their latest attack on the cargo vessel.
The Houthis have launched at least 57 attacks on commercial and military ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since Nov. 19, and the pace has picked up in recent days.
The US has been carrying out almost daily strikes to take out Houthi targets, including incoming missiles and drones aimed at ships, as well as weapons that were prepared to launch.
US warships have taken out dozens of incoming missiles, rockets and drones targeting commercial and Navy vessels.
With Post wires
