Most of us never think about how a WhatsApp message to a cousin in Dubai actually gets there. It travels along cables, thinner than a garden hose, lying on the seabed. Now Iran is openly saying some of those cables could become targets.
Two senior Iranian security officials told Reuters on Friday, October 23, that Tehran has drawn up detailed plans to hit undersea communications cables in the Gulf if the United States or Israel attacks Iran again. They did not say how or where such attacks would happen. One of them said Iran would also try to stop repairs so that any disruption lasts longer.
Quick Facts
- Who: Two unnamed senior Iranian security officials, speaking to Reuters; IRGC leaders Yadollah Javani and Hossein Mohebbi in public remarks this week
- What: Plans to target undersea internet and communications cables in the Gulf if the war resumes
- When: Reuters report published October 23, 2026, after IRGC statements on October 19 and 21
- Where: The Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz
- Key number: Iranian officials say seven major cables run under the Strait of Hormuz; the strait carries less than 1% of international bandwidth, according to TeleGeography
What Iran’s Officials Said About the Undersea Cables
The Reuters report is the most direct version of a warning Tehran has been building all week. One of the officials said that if Iran is attacked, “there will be no more red lines,” listing targets from undersea cables to military bases. The same official claimed Iran has full access to the cables and could destroy them easily.
The second official aimed a message at Gulf governments, saying they should hold Washington, not Tehran, responsible for any damage to cables they have invested in.
Neither official gave technical details, and none of the claims about capability have been independently verified. The US State Department and Iran’s Foreign Ministry did not respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.
A Week of IRGC Warnings on Hormuz Internet Cables
The threat did not come out of nowhere. On Monday, October 19, IRGC spokesman Hossein Mohebbi said at a ceremony in Tehran that seven major internet cables pass beneath the Strait of Hormuz, and that “new targets” would be unveiled, according to state broadcaster IRIB as reported by Anadolu.
On Wednesday, Brigadier General Yadollah Javani, the IRGC’s deputy commander for political affairs, told Iran’s Al-Alam channel that internet cables “will not be safe” if Iranian infrastructure is attacked, Rudaw reported.
Earlier in October, Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said US-linked cables, data centres and AI facilities in the region could be targeted in a new war. He added that such assets had not yet been included among Iran’s targets.
Qatar pushed back. Its foreign ministry spokesperson Ibrahim bin Sultan Al-Hashmi said Gulf countries, Iranians included, would suffer most if cables were cut, and called for an end to attacks in the waterway.
How Much Internet Traffic Is Actually at Risk?
Here is the reassuring part. Undersea cables carry about 99% of global internet traffic, according to the International Telecommunication Union. But the Strait of Hormuz itself is a small slice of that. Alan Mauldin, research director at TeleGeography, told Reuters that less than 1% of international bandwidth passes through the strait.
The International Cable Protection Committee also counts fewer active systems than Iran claims: five cable segments pass through the strait, plus some still being built. Its view is that damage there would mostly hurt connectivity within the region, not the wider world.
The bigger worry is elsewhere. Mauldin said the Red Sea, which links Europe, East Africa and Asia, handles about 3% of global international demand and roughly 10% of inter-regional traffic. Iran has not threatened cables there publicly, but its Houthi allies in Yemen operate near that route.
Even a regional cut would bite. Analysts quoted by Reuters said several cuts at once could slow internet speeds and disrupt banking, online shopping and cloud services. Fixing cables in a war zone is also slow, with higher insurance costs and delays in getting permits to enter territorial waters.
Background: The Iran War and the Strait of Hormuz
The US and Israel launched a war against Iran on February 28. Iran answered with missile and drone strikes across the region and disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, and Washington later imposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports. In June, the two sides signed a memorandum on freedom of navigation in the strait, but its implementation has stalled.
Digital infrastructure has already been hit once. In March, Iranian strikes hit two Amazon Web Services facilities in the UAE and damaged infrastructure near one in Bahrain, according to Reuters. At the time, the IRGC named Microsoft, Google, Apple and Nvidia as what it called legitimate targets.
Alex Vatanka of the Middle East Institute told Reuters the threats are mainly meant to deter a new conflict, and to get Gulf states and business leaders to press President Donald Trump about the risks to their investments.
Why the Gulf Cable Threat Matters for India
Millions of Indians live and work in the Gulf. They rely on the same networks to send money home, video-call family and run small businesses. A serious outage in the region would hit them first, and families in Kerala, Telangana or Punjab would feel it on the other end of the call.
For India’s own internet, the Hormuz figure suggests the direct risk is limited. The Red Sea route matters more for traffic between India and Europe, which is why any wider escalation would be worth watching. There is no official Indian government statement on the latest threat so far.
What We Don’t Know Yet
- Whether Iran actually has the means to reach and cut the cables it describes. Officials gave no details.
- Which specific cable systems Iran considers targets.
- How Gulf governments, which had not commented when Reuters published, will respond.
- Whether the stalled US-Iran understanding on Hormuz will be revived.
What This Means for You
For now, nothing has changed on the ground and no cable has been reported cut in this latest round. If you have family or work in the Gulf, it is sensible to keep a backup way of staying in touch, such as a regular phone number alongside internet apps. Businesses that depend on Gulf-based cloud servers may want to check whether their providers have backup routes. Rely on official statements rather than forwarded messages, which tend to spread fast in moments like this.
FAQs
What did Iran say about undersea cables?
Two senior Iranian security officials told Reuters on October 23 that Iran has detailed plans to hit Gulf undersea cables if the US or Israel attacks again, and would try to block repairs.
How many cables pass through the Strait of Hormuz?
Iranian officials say seven major cables. The International Cable Protection Committee counts five active segments, plus some under development.
Would cutting these cables shut down the internet worldwide?
No. TeleGeography says less than 1% of international bandwidth runs through the strait, so the main impact would be regional, though it could still be serious for Gulf countries.
Will internet in India be affected?
Nothing has been cut, and the strait carries only a small share of global traffic. Indians in the Gulf and their families back home would be the most likely to notice any disruption.
For background on how cable damage is handled, see the International Cable Protection Committee and the ITU’s guide to submarine cables.
Based on reporting by Reuters (via Daily Sabah and US News), Rudaw and Bernama/Anadolu.
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