11th September 2026
When we think about the war in Yemen, we tend to think about missiles, drones, oil tankers and shipping. But there is another battle taking place beneath the Red Sea which could become increasingly important.
Hundreds of metres below the surface are submarine communications cables carrying enormous quantities of internet traffic between Europe, the Middle East and Asia.
They are easy to forget because we cannot see them.
Yet modern economies depend upon them. And as the Houthis expand their control along Yemen's Red Sea coast, the question is beginning to emerge: could the conflict eventually threaten not just shipping, but the infrastructure carrying the world's data?
There is no evidence that the Houthis are currently preparing a campaign to deliberately cut internet cables. But the possibility is no longer something that security experts can simply ignore.
The Houthis are moving towards a strategic chokepoint
The immediate concern is the dramatic change taking place on the ground in Yemen. Houthi forces have captured the important port of Mocha and advanced towards the Hanish Islands in the Red Sea. They are also moving towards Dhubab and the island of Perim, which sit close to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
Bab el-Mandeb is effectively the gateway between the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean. It is enormously important for shipping. Around 12% of global trade normally passes through the wider Red Sea route, making the waterway one of the world's major commercial arteries.
The Houthis have already demonstrated that they can make shipping companies think twice about using the route. Now they are moving closer to the geographical point where the Red Sea narrows into the Bab el-Mandeb.
That gives them leverage far beyond the territory they actually control.
But there is another network beneath the ships
The seabed contains a network of fibre-optic cables connecting continents. These cables are the real highways of the internet.
Most people imagine the internet as something delivered by satellites, mobile phone masts and enormous data centres. In reality, international internet traffic depends overwhelmingly on physical cables laid across the world's oceans.
If you send an email from Britain to somebody in Asia, make an international financial transaction or access a cloud service hosted on another continent, there is a good chance that some part of that communication will eventually travel through a submarine cable.
The cables are therefore critical infrastructure, even though most people never think about them. And some of them pass through the Red Sea.
We have already had a warning
This isn't entirely theoretical.
In February 2024, several submarine cables in the Red Sea were damaged, disrupting communications between Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
The cause was never conclusively established. One possibility was that the cables had been damaged by the anchor of the Rubymar, a commercial vessel which had been attacked by the Houthis and subsequently sank. That is important because it demonstrates something that is sometimes overlooked.
A cable doesn't necessarily have to be deliberately attacked to become a casualty of a war. A ship sinks. An anchor drags across the seabed. A military operation makes cable repair dangerous.
A cable is damaged and suddenly an apparently distant conflict becomes a communications problem. That is one reason the present situation deserves attention.
What would happen if a cable were cut?
Probably not very much at first. The internet is not dependent on a single cable. There are multiple submarine routes and considerable redundancy. If one cable fails, operators can normally redirect traffic through other routes. That is precisely why a single cable cut would not mean Britain suddenly loses its internet.
The problem comes when several cables are damaged in the same area, or when repairs become difficult because the surrounding waters are too dangerous.
Then capacity can become constrained. Some countries or regions could experience slower connections, interruptions or higher costs as traffic is redirected.
Businesses relying on international cloud services could be affected. Financial institutions could face communications problems. International telephone and data services could be disrupted. And the longer the repair takes, the greater the potential impact.
The Houthis wouldn't have to "switch off the internet"
This is perhaps the most important point. The Houthis would not need some sophisticated weapon capable of shutting down the internet.
Their strategic advantage comes from geography. If they can make the waters around the cables dangerous for commercial or repair vessels, the consequences can continue even without deliberately attacking a cable. The same principle applies to shipping.
They don't need to sink every tanker passing through the Red Sea. They only need to make enough companies decide that the risk isn't worth taking.
The resulting diversions then create higher costs, longer journeys and delays. The cables present a similar problem.
A cable repair ship is a specialist vessel. If the surrounding area becomes a war zone, repairing a damaged cable becomes considerably more complicated.
And Yemen is now part of a much bigger war
This is why the latest fighting matters. The Houthis are not operating in isolation. The wider conflict involving Iran, the United States and its allies has already disrupted the Strait of Hormuz. At the same time, the Houthis have attacked Saudi Arabia and moved along Yemen's Red Sea coastline. Reuters reports that the group has advanced towards positions from which it could threaten the Bab el-Mandeb more directly.
That creates the possibility of something that would have seemed extraordinary only a short time ago. Two of the world's major energy and trading chokepoints could be threatened simultaneously.
Hormuz at one end of the Arabian Peninsula. Bab el-Mandeb at the other. And beneath the second route lies another piece of critical infrastructure: the cables carrying international communications.
The consequences could reach Britain
It is easy to think that all this is happening thousands of miles away and therefore has little relevance to people in Britain. But the modern economy doesn't work that way. The price of oil affects petrol, diesel, heating oil, transport and food.
The cost of shipping affects imported goods. And the reliability of international communications affects banks, businesses, government departments and companies using global data networks.
For somewhere such as Caithness, the lesson is particularly relevant. A community can be geographically remote yet economically dependent upon infrastructure located hundreds or thousands of miles away.
That has become one of the defining characteristics of the modern world.
The hidden vulnerability
There is a wider lesson here. We have spent years worrying about the vulnerability of power stations, electricity grids, oil pipelines, ports and telecommunications towers. But some of the most important infrastructure is hidden beneath the sea.
There are cables carrying the world's data and pipelines carrying energy. There are shipping lanes on the surface and strategic chokepoints controlling access to them.
They are largely invisible until something goes wrong. The renewed fighting in Yemen is therefore more than another chapter in a very long civil war.
The Houthis have demonstrated that a relatively small military force can influence international shipping far beyond the territory it controls. Now, as they move towards the Bab el-Mandeb, the world is being reminded that the global economy has more than one set of arteries.
If the fighting continues to spread, the question may not simply be whether a tanker can safely pass through the Red Sea.
It may eventually be whether the cables beneath it can remain safely connected.
The next major disruption from Yemen may not arrive on a ship. It could come through the seabed.
The United Kingdom strongly condemns the Houthis’ decision to resume conflict in Yemen and their continued strikes on Saudi Arabia: UK statement at the UN Security Council
Statement by Ambassador Kate Foster, UK Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, at the UN Security Council meeting on Yemen. 10 September 2026
I will make three points.
First, the United Kingdom joined Bahrain in calling for this urgent meeting following the serious escalation by the Houthis in Yemen and their reckless attacks against Saudi Arabia.
The United Kingdom strongly condemns the Houthis’ decision to resume conflict in Yemen and their continued strikes on Saudi Arabia, including the targeting of civilian and energy infrastructure.
We call on the Houthis to cease their attacks immediately.
We offer our condolences to all those killed, injured, and affected by this violence, and we stand in solidarity with Saudi Arabia and the Government of Yemen in the face of such threats.
We reaffirm the right of Saudi Arabia and Yemen to defend their security and sovereignty in accordance with international law.
We should be clear: the Houthis bear full responsibility for this crisis.
Their attacks once again undermine regional stability and threaten freedom of navigation, transit passage, and vital trade routes through the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandeb.
The Houthis’ advance towards the Bab al-Mandeb will only heighten risks to international shipping, maritime security, and global trade through this critical waterway.
This is felt first and hardest by developing countries.
Second, the Houthis’ decision to restart conflict in Yemen puts the most vulnerable Yemenis at further risk and is deepening humanitarian suffering.
More than 22 million Yemenis already require humanitarian assistance, while over 18 million face acute food insecurity.
The Houthis’ continued detention of UN and NGO personnel is contributing to this suffering, and obstructs the very people trying to help vulnerable Yemenis at a time of acute humanitarian need.
The Houthis must immediately and unconditionally release all detained personnel from NGOs, civil society, and diplomatic missions, as well as the 73 detained UN staff.
Finally, Iran’s long-standing support for the Houthis continues to fuel instability in Yemen.
We reiterate the importance of full implementation of Security Council resolutions 2140 and 2216, including measures to prevent the transfer of arms, military support, and dual-use components that enable Houthi attacks and undermine peace and security in the region.
All Member States must uphold these obligations to help prevent Houthi attacks against civilians, neighbouring states, and international shipping.
President, the United Kingdom remains steadfast in its support for the efforts of the UN Special Envoy to secure lasting peace in Yemen.
We urge the Houthis to place the needs of Yemenis first, to cease their attacks immediately and re-engage in the peace process.
Today, this Council should send a clear and consistent message: the Houthis must de-escalate, cease their attacks, and return to a path towards peace.
The UK will continue to work with partners in support of this goal.