- Some Internet traffic passing through Red Sea has been hit after cable cutting
- Microsoft, Netblocks and Linode All noticed disturbances
- Continuous tension puts cables at higher risk
Several underwater fiber optic cables have been cut into the Red Sea, which disrupts the Internet connection throughout the region, Microsoft has confirmed.
Confirmation of the incident comes after Azure Cloud Computing customers began to notice higher than usual latency on September 6, 2025, but Microsoft has already issued temporary corrections to avoid disturbances as it indicates a longer-term path to restore.
Traffic passing through the Middle East was primarily affected, including both relations with Asia and Europe – all other traffic globally remained unaffected.
Microsoft confirms that the red sea cable is cut
The party responsible for damaging the cable used by Mirosoft has not been confirmed, but other companies, including Netblocks and Linode, have also marked latency problems. Pakistan’s telecommunications authority also warned of disturbances.
“We expect higher latency on a certain traffic that previously drove through the Middle East,” Microsoft confirmed, noting that it should now undergo other regions.
“Compared by underwater fiber can take time to repair, as such, we will continuously monitor, rebalans and optimize routing to reduce customer impact in the meantime,” added Microsoft.
Tata Communications and Alcatel Submarine Networks, the companies behind two of the cables in the region, have not yet issued a comment on the power break.
Yemens Minster of Information and Culture, Moammar Al-Eyani, called the incident a “wake-up call for the international community.”
It has become increasingly clear that our underwater cable networks are not only important for global trade, but that they are also prone to attacks in the midst of ongoing and escalating geopolitical tensions.
More widely disturbed former cable damage in February 2024 Asia-Europe traffic. Several cables and pipelines have also been damaged in the Baltic Sea since 2022 in attacks suspected of being related to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Meanwhile, Microsoft’s traffic has been restored, albeit with slower than usual performance via different routes.
