Internet services remain disrupted across Pakistan since Tuesday due to a technical glitch in international submarine cables that connect the country with the outside world. Users across the country have experienced downgraded speeds.
“We regret to inform you that due to international submarine cable fault, internet services are impacted across Pakistan. Our technical teams are working on fully restoring internet services", said Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) in a tweet while apologising for the inconvenience and thanking people for being patient.
The telecom authority PTCL along with international organisations was working to ascertain the location where the fault had developed.
According to news website ProPakistani, two submarine cables IMEWE and SEAMEWE 4, which carry almost 50% of Pakistan’s internet traffic, went offline due to a fault.
In an update, the website wrote that a third submarine cable system, AAE-1, also went down partially due to severe flapping. PTCL, however, refuted such claims on Twitter.
Some Twitter users said they have been experiencing poor internet service for days, while others wanted compensation in their bills.
Although PTCL later sent out an update that the cable fault had been fixed and the internet had been restored, users continued complaining about not being able to use the internet.
Netizens also thought the "Azadi March" organised by the party Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazal (JUI-F) and anti-government protests could be behind the disrupted internet services.
Attracting thousands of people, including seminary students, the anti-government "Azadi March" (Freedom March), which started on Sunday afternoon from the port city of Karachi towards Islamabad had reached Lahore (about 376 km away) on Tuesday.