Several Iranian-linked tankers and an Iranian fishing vessel have been loitering near undersea internet cables in the Gulf of Oman, close to the Strait of Hormuz. Their movements may indicate that Iran is preparing to target submarine communications infrastructure in response to recent US and Israeli attacks, according to maritime intelligence firm Windward.
Vessels tracked near critical cable routes
In October, Windward tracked three sanctioned tankers and an Iranian fishing vessel operating near a major undersea cable, the Financial Times reported. Six active submarine cables currently pass through the disputed Strait of Hormuz, connecting the Middle East with Europe, Africa and Asia. Two additional cable segments are under construction in the region.
Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar rely entirely on telecommunications cables running through the Strait of Hormuz chokepoint for connectivity with the outside world. Other countries also depend heavily on the region’s cable network. About one-third of India’s westbound internet traffic, for example, passes through the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz.
Ships moved slowly and sometimes went dark
One of the cables under construction is the 2Africa cable, which is owned by a technology consortium that includes US company Meta. It was among the main cable corridors visited by the vessels linked to Iran.
Windward combined ship-tracking data with satellite imagery to monitor the vessels as they slowed down and repeatedly looped close to multiple cables. Some ships “went dark” by turning off their Automatic Identification System (AIS) transponders, which normally broadcast a vessel’s location and other information.
These movement patterns and other behavior suggest that Iranian-linked vessels may be “mapping cable routes and placing explosive charges and mines in the dark,” Windward told the Financial Times.
Tankers had no apparent commercial purpose
Windward pointed to two licensed tankers linked to Iran that had been “drifting directly above the regional cable corridor for days…there was no commercial reason for either to stop,” according to the firm’s blog post. Neither vessel was carrying commercial cargo.
Source: arstechnica.com