The Premise
99% of international data traffic travels via subsea cables, not satellites. The "Cloud" is actually under the ocean. The Red Sea is the "Suez Canal of Data" — a narrow, shallow choke point carrying the bulk of traffic between Europe and Asia. It is increasingly a kinetic war zone.
Intelligence Update: The Severance Risk
The Density: Approximately 16 critical cables run through the Bab al-Mandab Strait.
The Threat: The Houthi insurgency has proven that non-state actors can disrupt global connectivity without a navy. You do not need a submarine to cut a cable; you just need a dragging anchor or a shallow-water submersible.
Field Evidence: The Physical Disconnect
The Houthi rebels sank the Rubymar bulk carrier. As it sank, its dragging anchor severed three critical cables (AAE-1, Seacom, EIG). 25% of data traffic between Europe and Asia was rerouted instantly.
The Lesson: Collateral damage is a systemic risk. The cables were not the target, but they were the casualty.
Kinetic explosives destroyed the Nord Stream gas pipelines. If a state actor decides to target the trans-Atlantic fibre bundles (MAREA, DUNANT) instead of gas pipes, the Western financial system goes dark.
The Verdict
Starlink is a backup, not a replacement. For Gulf nations building "AI Sovereignty," reliance on the Red Sea cable bundle is a single point of failure. The strategic move is "The Great Overland Route" — terrestrial fibre through Saudi Arabia/Jordan to bypass the maritime chokepoint.