3 Fiber Optic Cables Cut, Severe Millions from Internet

A submarine cable in the Middle East has been snapped, adding to global net problems caused by breaks in two lines under the Mediterranean on Wednesday.

Bloomberg and Times UK are reporting that the two cables cut in the Mediterranean Wednesday are the result of an ‘errant anchor.’ Although this has not yet been confirmed, storms did force a port call for many ships in the Mediterranean this week.

It is understood that the first two cables were broken after a severe weather warning in the Mediterranean Sea forced weather officials in Egypt to tell ships in the vicinity of Alexandria to drop their anchors. Two of the 40 ships that were nearby are thought to have unwittingly dropped their anchors directly on top of the cables, which are buried only 50cm beneath the surface and can easily be snagged.

While this seems to depict cuts in the Mediterranean as accidental, a break in a third fiber optic cable in the Persian Gulf darkens the probability of coincidence. This doesn’t necessarily suggest malevolence, who knows, a third anchor could have gotten lucky.

One Telecom chief in Dubai has called the situation “very unusual.” Meanwhile, a representative of FLAG, who owns two of the three cables, deflects suggestions of foul-play:

A FLAG official in India, speaking on condition of anonymity because of company policy, said workers were still trying to determine how the Persian Gulf cable was cut. He declined to comment on whether the cut was somehow linked to Wednesday’s cut in Egypt, but said he did not believe FLAG’s cables were deliberately targeted.

What is known is that millions from Egypt to India are without the net–millions more are left with a crippled connection. One figure indicates that 60 million users were affected in India alone. Telecoms in the region are scrambling to find other arrangements.