ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) - The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) on Thursday said a fault in the SEA-ME-WE 5 (SMW-5) international submarine cable system has disrupted internet traffic, leading to intermittent issues with internet connectivity and service quality for users across Pakistan.
In a statement, the telecom regulator said it was closely monitoring the situation and coordinating with relevant stakeholders to minimise the impact of the disruption.
The PTA said Transworld Associates (TWA), the country's only private-sector operator with exclusive ownership of submarine fibre-optic cable systems, is working with the SMW-5 Consortium to identify the root cause of the fault and determine an estimated timeline for restoration.
To maintain internet services, the authority said traffic is being rerouted through alternative international links to ensure continuity and reduce the impact on users while repair efforts continue.
Meanwhile, TWA also informed its customers of the disruption through an SMS, apologising for the inconvenience and confirming that a technical fault had affected one of its submarine cables.
The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) is closely monitoring internet traffic disruption caused by a fault in the SEA-ME-WE 5 (SMW5) international submarine cable system. As a result, some internet users may experience intermittent degradation in service quality and… pic.twitter.com/Ei2n5LtiMV
— PTA (@PTAofficialpk) July 2, 2026The company said its technical teams were working to resolve the issue and promised to provide updates as they became available.
The PTA reiterated that it would continue monitoring the situation until internet services are fully restored across the country.
The disruption comes months after Pakistan welcomed the landing of the SEA-ME-WE 6 (SMW-6) submarine cable in November.
According to the Ministry of Information Technology, the new cable system has a total capacity of more than 100 terabits per second, with Pakistan allocated 13.2Tbps.
The ministry said the project is expected to significantly improve internet capacity, resilience, and connectivity by providing one of the lowest-latency routes linking Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and Western Europe.