Qatari telecoms company Ooredoo plans to invest more than $500 million on new international cable projects, state news agency QNA reported, citing the company's CEO.

WHY IT'S IMPORTANT

The new projects would redraw the connection routes between Oman, Iraq, Turkey and Europe via land routes that would speed connection times, Ooredoo CEO Aziz Aluthman Fakhroo told QNA.

KEY QUOTE

"This new system will enhance the flexibility of global networks, create alternative routes that bypass current challenges in the Red Sea and the Strait of Hormuz, and place the region at the heart of the international data network," Fakhroo said.

CONTEXT

During the Israel-Iran war in June, electronic interference with commercial ship navigation systems surged around the Strait of Hormuz and the wider Gulf, affecting vessels sailing through the region. Internet connectivity in multiple countries has also been affected by subsea cable outages in the Red Sea.

Ooredoo has operations across the Middle East, North Africa and Southeast Asia.

($1 = 3.6435 Qatar riyals) (Reporting by Jaidaa Taha Editing by David Goodman)