Tehran has drawn up detailed plans to target undersea communications cables in the Gulf if the United States and Israel attack Iran again, two senior Iranian security officials told Reuters .
The two Iranian security officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, gave few details and did not say how or where exactly Tehran would carry out such attacks. The U.S. Department of State and Iran’s Foreign Ministry did not respond to Reuters ’ requests for comment on the Iranian security officials’ remarks. There was no immediate comment from Gulf states. “Tehran wants Gulf states and corporate executives to press (U.S.
Yadollah Javani, the deputy head of political affairs for Iran’s Revolutionary Guards (IRGC), said on Wednesday (October 21) that Iran could target seven major internet cables beneath the Strait of Hormuz if Iranian infrastructure came under attack. Undersea cables carry around 99% of global internet traffic, according to the International Telecommunication Union, a UN agency. But the global impact of such attacks by Iran could be limited as less than 1% of international bandwidth passes through the Strait of Hormuz, said Alan Mauldin, research director at telecommunications research firm TeleGeography.
But one of them said Iran would aim to prevent repairs after any attacks to prolong disruptions to communications, including internet connections. “If Iran is attacked, there will be no more red lines, from undersea cables to military bases, including covert ones,” one of the officials said. The official warned Washington not to “play with fire”, and said Iran had full access to the undersea cables and could easily destroy them. Washington’s Gulf allies have invested heavily in such infrastructure and they “should hold Washington, not Tehran, responsible for any damage to undersea cables,” the second Iranian security official said. President Donald) Trump over the risks his policies pose to their investment plans,” said Mr .Vatanka.
