Microsoft cloud platform hit by cable cuts in Red Sea

Dubai: Global tech giant Microsoft on Sunday said network traffic for its Azure cloud computing platform was experiencing increased delays in parts of...

Dubai: Global tech giant Microsoft on Sunday said network traffic for its Azure cloud computing platform was experiencing increased delays in parts of the Middle East due to "undersea fibre cuts" in the Red Sea.

Microsoft did not provide an explanation for what caused the cuts to the submarine lines but noted its network had been affected since Saturday.

"Network traffic that does not traverse through the Middle East is not impacted," the company said in a statement.

The internet access monitoring organisation NetBlocks noted that a series of submarine cable outages in the Red Sea has degraded internet connectivity in several countries, including in India and Pakistan.

Global internet and telecom cables have followed shipping routes through the Red Sea, but there has been growing anxiety about the state of the lines after Yemen's Huthi rebels began attacking passing merchant vessels in late 2023, in actions the group said was in solidarity with the Palestinians amid the Gaza war.