Revolutionary Guards Threaten Strait of Hormuz Cables
The Iranian military entity issued a warning to target critical submarine internet infrastructure in the waterway.
Updated on Oct. 21, 2026 in Cybersecurity
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The Revolutionary Guards have threatened to target submarine internet cables passing through the Strait of Hormuz. This warning comes amidst rising regional tensions, though the Strait currently carries less than one percent of global international bandwidth.
Why it matters
The threat was issued by the Revolutionary Guards as a retaliatory measure against potential attacks on Iranian infrastructure. While the region is sensitive, experts note that operators maintain diverse routing to mitigate risks from localized disruptions.
There are five active submarine cable segments within the Strait of Hormuz, managed by three major systems: AAE-1, FALCON, and Gulf Bridge International. These routes operate as a fraction of global connectivity compared to the high-traffic Red Sea corridors.
The players
Revolutionary Guards
This is a branch of the Iranian Armed Forces that exerts significant influence over the country's military and regional strategy.
Yadollah Javani
He is a senior official within the Revolutionary Guards who communicated the recent threat against regional infrastructure.
The details
The threat targets infrastructure protected by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, which guards the laying and maintenance of subsea lines. In the event of a breach, telecommunications providers utilize terrestrial or alternative subsea routes to reroute traffic and maintain connectivity.
Timeline
February 2024: Three cables were damaged in the Red Sea.
March 2024: Four submarine cables were damaged off the coast of West Africa.
September 2025: Four cables were damaged in the Red Sea.
October 21, 2026: Yadollah Javani issued a threat regarding internet cables.
The Tech Race
This threat highlights the increasing vulnerability of global communications infrastructure, which operates under the framework of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. As reliance on subsea connectivity grows, state actors are increasingly identifying these legacy nodes as strategic pressure points.
Users in the region served by these specific cables may face connectivity delays or routing latency if operators are forced to switch to backup terrestrial paths. Most international traffic, however, is routed through more resilient corridors like the Red Sea, minimizing broader global impact.
The takeaway
Communications infrastructure is increasingly becoming a strategic focal point in modern geopolitical disputes. Users can rely on the fact that global network operators are already architected to handle isolated cable failures by rerouting traffic through alternative systems.
Further reading
For more on the security of global data networks, visit our Cybersecurity section.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Iranintl.
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