A senior Iranian security official has issued a stark warning that American-linked technology infrastructure across the Middle East could face attack if the United States launches further military action against Iran.
The remarks come amid stalled talks and a New York Times report that the U.S. and Israel plan to launch strikes against Iran after the American midterm elections.
The United States has reinforced its naval military deployment to the Strait of Hormuz region, where Washington has clamped a blockade of Iranian ports while Tehran continues to target commercial ships, accusing them of diverting from the path it set for them to transit through.
U.S. President Donald Trump has warned that Iran could be harder if diplomacy fails. Trump has categorically stated that Iran would not be allowed to have nuclear weapons. Tehran says its enriched uranium will stay in the country, and stipulated that flexibility in its stance on return to negotiations depends on Washington accepting its demand for removal of blockade and U.S. sanctions.
This week Iranians plainly told mediator Pakistan that it has nothing new to offer and stuck to its conditions for revival of peace talks.
🔴 Senior Iranian official Mohsen Rezaei warns US technology infrastructure in the region could be targeted if Washington attacks Iran again
🔴 Rezaei says more than $2 trillion worth of US-linked technology assets in the region could be at risk
🔴 Potential targets include communications cables, data centers, AI facilities and other critical infrastructure
— Al Arabiya English (@AlArabiya_Eng) October 22, 2026
Negotiations Halted, Infrastructure in Crosshairs
Major General Mohsen Rezaei, Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said negotiations with the United States have stopped.
Should hostilities resume, undersea internet cables, data centers, and artificial intelligence facilities could become targets, according to a report from Iran’s official news agency IRNA.
Rezaei specifically pointed to U.S.-linked technology assets in the region that could be at risk. Potential targets include communications cables, data centers, AI facilities, and other critical infrastructure.
US and Israel Plan for Possible New Strikes on Iran After Elections https://t.co/pmcg1ZvLiM via @ViewsNewsNow
— Views&News (@ViewsNewsMag) October 22, 2026
In an interview with state-run Press TV, Rezaei stated: “We have not yet included these assets among our targets. But if war breaks out, many of these cables, data centers, artificial intelligence facilities, and numerous other sites will be destroyed.”
He added that the value of these cables, data centers, and AI centers exceeds $2 trillion, noting they were brought to the region from America and Europe because of their high energy demands.
Seven Undersea Cables in the Strait of Hormuz
Iranian officials and state-linked media have repeatedly highlighted that at least seven major undersea internet and communications cables pass through the Strait of Hormuz and surrounding waters.
Iran’s Tasnim News Agency published detailed maps identifying these systems, describing them as critical arteries carrying internet, financial, and commercial data. Reports citing TeleGeography and Submarine Networks data, along with Iranian outlets such as WANA and Parsinews, confirm that between five and seven major cable systems transit the strait and nearby areas.
These include systems such as FALCON, Asia-Africa-Europe 1 (AAE-1), Gulf Bridge International (GBI/MENA), TGN-Gulf, and others that link Persian Gulf countries to routes toward India, East Asia, Africa, and Europe. Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) spokesman Hossein Mohebbi has publicly noted that seven major cables run beneath the waterway and that global internet and commercial data depend on them, framing the information as a reminder to adversaries.
The first undersea telegraph cables in the broader Persian Gulf region were installed in the 1860s. Historical records from the Qatar Digital Library and British Library document a successful cable laid from the head of the Persian Gulf (Basra area) to Karachi around 1864, following earlier proposals in 1860. A further cable from Jask in eastern Persia to Bombay was laid in 1869. These early telegraph lines marked the beginning of undersea communications in the area. Modern fiber-optic cables followed much later, with one of the earliest bilateral systems connecting the UAE and Iran entering service in 1992.
Economic Pressure Versus Strategic Collapse
Addressing the effects of U.S. sanctions and a potential naval blockade aimed at weakening Iran’s economy, Rezaei spoke in an interview with the U.S.-based investigative outlet DropSite News, as reported by Al Jazeera.
“Iran will suffer from a prolonged blockade. Families will pay a price, investment will be damaged, and sustaining some sectors of the economy will become more difficult,” he said. “But economic pain and strategic collapse are not the same thing.”
He argued that Washington has repeatedly erred by assuming that making life hard enough for ordinary Iranians would force the political system to accept American strategic demands. “These are two different calculations,” Rezaei told DropSite News.
Military Capabilities Held in Reserve
Rezaei stressed that Iran has not used its full range of military options. Speaking to state broadcaster Press TV, he said the conflict must end on terms that prevent another “illegal aggression.”
In the DropSite News interview, he elaborated: “We did not deploy all our capabilities in the previous stages. We brought more capabilities into operation in proportion to the intensity of the war, and we are also prepared for the next stage.”
Iran, he said, has spent decades preparing for a potential war with the United States. Those preparations include dispersed production, underground facilities, varied launch systems, and the ability to repair damage and replace losses.
“Our goal is not to make it to 2029. Our goal is to end the war on terms that reduce the likelihood of another war,” Rezaei stated.
Any action against Iran would carry a cost, he added, according to IRNA. “If diplomacy can create this understanding, we prefer diplomacy; but if the war continues, Iran has the necessary means to sustain its response.”
Asim Tanveer is a seasoned journalist working for TV and electronic and print media outlets. He has been working for some of the world’s leading news organizations including Associated Press (AP), Reuters, BBC, CNN, CNBC, Star TV, Voice of America and The New York Times for more than 20 years. He has won several awards for his live coverage of events that include a Reuters News Agency World Award and the Pride of Performance award in 2010.
