Web desk: Internet services in Pakistan may continue to face disruptions for several weeks as repairs on damaged undersea cables off Yemen remain pending.
Earlier this month, Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) had already cautioned users about possible slowdowns, pointing to cable faults near Jeddah in Saudi waters.
The company noted that the problem had partly reduced the bandwidth capacity of two key systems, SMW4 and IMEWE, which connect Pakistan to the global internet.
PTCL also said its international partners were working urgently to restore the connections, while alternative routes were being used locally to minimise the impact.
Internet disruption may last 4-5 weeks: IT Secretary Dr Zarar Hashim
On Thursday, Federal Secretary for Information Technology and Telecommunication Zarrar Hasham updated NA panel during a meeting of the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Information Technology.
He explained that “many submarine cables near the coast of Yemen have been cut, while two cables coming to Pakistan have been affected; the restoration of the damaged cables may take four to five weeks.”
He described the situation in Yemen as “complicated”, adding that besides the two lines supplying Pakistan, another four to five cables in the area had also been damaged.
He informed the committee that to ensure continuity, the service providers had shifted internet traffic through alternate channels.
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