Islamabad — Pakistan’s Secretary for Information Technology, Zarrar Hasham Khan, has stated that restoring the country’s disrupted internet connectivity could take up to four to five weeks, following damage to multiple undersea cables near Yemen. The update came during a session of the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on IT and Telecommunication held on Thursday at Islamabad’s IT Park.
Responding to concerns raised by committee member Sadiq Memon over ongoing internet slowdowns and service disruptions, the IT secretary revealed that between four and five submarine internet cables had been damaged off the coast of Yemen. This has directly impacted the bandwidth supplying internet to Pakistan.
“This is not a minor disruption — four to five cables have been cut,” Hasham explained. “Two of these directly affect Pakistan’s connectivity.”
He added that specialized cable repair ships would be required for restoration and that the complete repair process could take up to five weeks. In the meantime, traffic is being rerouted through alternative networks to maintain partial connectivity.
Three New Cables to Strengthen Connectivity in 2025–26
During the session, Memon questioned why internet issues persist if new submarine cables are reportedly being installed.
In response, the IT secretary confirmed that three new international cables are scheduled to connect to Pakistan within the next 12 to 18 months. These new connections aim to enhance the country’s internet resilience by linking it directly to Europe. He stated:
“Agreements have been finalized, and the cables are expected to arrive within the specified timeline.”
Ongoing Cable Issues Have Disrupted Internet Throughout 2024
This is not the first time undersea cable faults have caused connectivity problems in Pakistan. Earlier this month, Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) reported that cable cuts in Saudi waters had affected bandwidth on the SMW4 (South Asia-Middle East-West Asia) and IMEWE (India-Middle East-Western Europe) networks.
In January 2024, a fault in the Asia-Africa-Europe-1 (AAE-1) cable had already caused major slowdowns. PTCL confirmed on January 3 that teams were working to restore services, and by January 16, the company declared that the issue had been fully resolved.
Despite ongoing upgrades and future connectivity plans, Pakistan’s reliance on a limited number of undersea cables continues to make it vulnerable to external disruptions, highlighting the need for diversified and redundant internet infrastructure.
