Houthis may sabotage western internet cables in Red Sea, Yemen telecoms firms warn

Houthi fighters at a rally in Gaza on Sunday. The UN-recognised Yemen government and telecoms firms have said Houthis may seek to damage submarine internet cables in the Red Sea.
Photograph: Mohammed Hamoud/Getty Images

Telecom firms linked to the UN-recognised Yemen government have said they fear Houthi rebels are planning to sabotage a network of submarine cables in the Red Sea critical to the functioning of the western internet and the transmission of financial data.

The warning came after a Houthi-linked Telegram channel published a map of the cables running along the bed of the Red Sea. The image was accompanied by a message: “There are maps of international cables connecting all regions of the world through the sea. It seems that Yemen is in a strategic location, as internet lines that connect entire continents – not only countries – pass near it.”