Yazılar

Red Sea Cable Cuts Disrupt Internet Across Asia and Middle East

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Internet services across Asia and the Middle East were disrupted after multiple subsea cable cuts in the Red Sea, according to monitoring group NetBlocks. Connectivity issues have hit users in India, Pakistan, and the UAE, with outages observed on the networks of Etisalat and Du.

The cause of the damage remains unclear, though failures were identified near Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, a key junction for undersea fiber routes linking Asia, Africa, and Europe.

Microsoft confirmed that its Azure cloud services were affected by the outages, warning users of increased latency. While traffic has been rerouted via alternative paths to prevent full service interruptions, Microsoft said some customers may still experience delays on routes previously running through the Middle East.

Azure is the world’s second-largest cloud provider after Amazon Web Services (AWS), making such disruptions significant for global enterprises. Experts note that the incident underscores the fragility of subsea cable infrastructure, which carries more than 95% of international internet traffic and is increasingly exposed to both accidents and geopolitical tensions.

Countries That Have Blocked or Restricted WhatsApp

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WhatsApp has faced restrictions in several countries, ranging from complete bans to partial or temporary limitations.

Fully Blocked:

  • China: Blocking started in 2017 via the Great Firewall. Users rely on WeChat instead.

  • North Korea: WhatsApp is generally inaccessible alongside Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and other platforms since 2016.

Partial Block / VoIP Restrictions:

  • Russia: Began restricting some WhatsApp calls in 2025 due to Meta’s failure to share information in fraud and terrorism cases.

  • United Arab Emirates (UAE): VoIP services were banned in 2017, though text messaging remains functional. Calls were temporarily allowed during Expo Dubai in 2020.

  • Qatar: VoIP calls restricted; messaging works normally.

  • Egypt: No full ban on calls, but authorities have attempted to throttle them.

  • Jordan: VoIP call restrictions in place.

Intermittent or Temporary Bans:

  • Iran: Previously banned, lifted restrictions last year as part of broader internet policy changes.

  • Turkey: No current ban, but WhatsApp has been blocked in the past over domestic issues.

  • Uganda: Banned WhatsApp in 2021 as retaliation for Facebook restrictions, now lifted.

  • Cuba: Temporarily restricted social media and messaging platforms, including WhatsApp, in 2021.

  • United States: WhatsApp is banned on all U.S. House of Representatives devices as of June 2025.

These restrictions vary widely, often targeting VoIP calls rather than text messaging, and can be temporary or intermittent depending on local regulations.

Dubai’s Emirates Signs Preliminary Deal to Add Crypto Payments via Crypto.com

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Emirates airline has signed a preliminary agreement with Crypto.com to enable customers to pay for flights using the crypto trading platform’s payment service, the carrier’s parent company announced on Wednesday. The partnership is expected to launch next year and aims to attract younger, tech-savvy travelers who prefer using digital currencies, said Adnan Kazim, Emirates’ deputy president and chief commercial officer.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has rapidly positioned itself as a global hub for cryptocurrency businesses, with numerous firms establishing operations or expanding in the region. The country already permits cryptocurrency payments in sectors such as real estate, education fees, and transportation.

Dubai, in particular, has been proactive in regulating the virtual asset industry, establishing the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) in 2022. The Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC), one of the city’s largest free zones, currently hosts over 650 crypto companies.

Other Gulf-based airlines have also embraced cryptocurrencies recently. For example, Dubai-listed Air Arabia announced in May that it would accept AE Coin, a UAE dirham-backed stablecoin, for flight bookings.

The Emirates-Crypto.com deal marks a significant step toward integrating cryptocurrencies into mainstream airline payments and reflects the broader trend of digital currencies gaining traction in the Gulf region.