# [WARNING] Iran hardliner urges cutting Hormuz undersea internet cables

*Thursday, September 3, 2026 at 9:18 AM UTC — Hamer Intelligence Services Desk*

**Detected**: 2026-09-03T09:18:11.804Z (1h ago)
**Tags**: MARKET, energy, geopolitics, MiddleEast, Iran, riskPremium, infrastructure
**Sources**: OSINT
**Permalink**: https://hamerintel.com/data/alerts/20902.md
**Source**: https://hamerintel.com/summaries

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**Summary**: A leading Iranian hardline editor close to the Supreme Leader argued that blocking oil exports through Hormuz is now less effective and called on the IRGC to target undersea internet cables in the strait. While this is not yet policy or an operational move, it signals an escalation path that could shift market focus from pure oil-flow risk to broader digital and financial infrastructure disruption in a core energy chokepoint.

## Detail

An editorial by Hossein Shariatmadari, editor of the hardline Kayhan newspaper, is calling for Iran’s Revolutionary Guard to cut undersea internet cables in the Strait of Hormuz, arguing that disrupting crude flows alone has become a less effective tool. Kayhan is widely viewed as reflecting the thinking of Iran’s most conservative factions and sometimes trial-ballooning escalatory options.

There is no evidence that Iran has begun preparations to physically target subsea cables, and such an action would be a major escalation against global digital and financial infrastructure. However, coming amid active US–Iran military exchanges and existing tensions over Gulf bases, the suggestion broadens the perceived attack surface in Hormuz beyond tankers and export terminals.

For energy markets, any credible increase in risk around the strait typically widens the geopolitical risk premium in Brent and Dubai benchmarks. Current crude and product flows through Hormuz remain high under US naval escort, but if traders start to price a scenario where communications or trading connectivity in the Gulf is periodically disrupted, we could see a 1–3% uptick in front-month Brent and Oman/Dubai spreads, alongside higher implied vol. LNG routed through Qatar and the UAE would also see a modest risk repricing given dependence on marine navigation and communications.

Beyond energy, undersea cable risk supports safe-haven bids in gold and could weigh mildly on regional FX (QAR, AED) and risk proxies (EM FX, high-yield credit) even without an actual attack. Historically, rhetorical threats to close Hormuz (2011–2012) moved Brent several dollars once markets viewed them as potentially actionable. Explicit calls to instead hit digital arteries are new, but fit a broader pattern of Iran exploring asymmetric tools.

Absent concrete military or engineering activity near cable routes, the impact should be viewed as a short-term risk-premium adjustment rather than a structural supply shock. That said, if Western intelligence or shipping advisories begin referencing cable vulnerabilities, the market reaction could become more pronounced and longer-lived.

**AFFECTED ASSETS:** Brent Crude, Oman/Dubai crude benchmarks, Gulf LNG spot prices, Gold, Middle East EM sovereign credit, GCC FX baskets