Microsoft Azure services see major disruption after Red Sea cables cut

News
By published

Azure and other services are experiencing disruptions

A SCUBA Diver Checks An Undersea Cable
(Image credit: Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization/Flickr)
  • Some internet traffic passing through the Red Sea has been hit following cable cutting
  • Microsoft, NetBlocks and Linode all noted disruptions
  • Ongoing tensions put cables at higher risk

Multiple subsea fiber-optic cables have been cut in the Red Sea, disrupting internet connectivity across the region, Microsoft has confirmed.

Confirmation of the incident comes after Azure cloud computing customers started noticing higher-than-usual latency on September 6, 2025, but Microsoft has already issued temporary fixes to avoid disruption as it sets out a longer-term path to restore.

Traffic passing through the Middle East was primarily affected, including both connections to Asia and Europe – all other traffic globally remained unaffected.

Microsoft confirms its Red Sea cable has been cut

The party responsible for damaging the cable used by Mirosoft has not been confirmed, but other companies including NetBlocks and Linode have also flagged latency issues. Pakistan’s telecom authority also warned of disruptions.

“We do expect higher latency on some traffic that previously traversed through the Middle East,” Microsoft confirmed, noting it would now have to pass through other regions.

“Undersea fiber cuts can take time to repair, as such we will continuously monitor, rebalance, and optimize routing to reduce customer impact in the meantime,” Microsoft added.

Tata Communications and Alcatel Submarine Networks, the companies behind two of the cables in the region, have not yet issued a comment on the outage.

Yemen’s Minster of Information and Culture, Moammar al-Eryani, called the incident a “wake-up call for the international community.”

It has becoming increasingly obvious that our subsea cable networks aren’t just important for global trade, but that they’re also prone to attacks amid ongoing and escalating geopolitical tensions.

More broadly, earlier cable damage in February 2024 disrupted Asia-Europe traffic. Several cables and pipelines have also been damaged in the Baltic Sea since 2022 in attacks suspected to be related to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

In the meantime, Microsoft’s traffic has been restored, albeit with slower-than-usual performance via different routes.

You might also like

TOPICS
Craig Hale
Craig Hale

With several years’ experience freelancing in tech and automotive circles, Craig’s specific interests lie in technology that is designed to better our lives, including AI and ML, productivity aids, and smart fitness. He is also passionate about cars and the decarbonisation of personal transportation. As an avid bargain-hunter, you can be sure that any deal Craig finds is top value!

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.