Iranian officials, including IRGC spokesmen and security council figures, issued explicit threats in October 2026 to target undersea cables in the Strait of Hormuz if the United States or Israel resumes strikes, citing seven specific lines and warning of plans to disrupt repairs. These statements followed renewed US pressure under President Trump and coincided with reports of Iran-linked vessels, including sanctioned tankers, exhibiting unusual loitering, circling, and AIS blackout patterns over cable corridors in the Gulf of Oman in late October. Such activity aligns with reconnaissance or potential mine-laying profiles according to maritime intelligence tracking. The cables primarily affect regional Gulf connectivity rather than global bandwidth, and no confirmed damage or attribution has occurred. Traders reflect skepticism through low implied probabilities for confirmed Iranian or proxy-caused physical damage by year-end, weighing execution risks, escalation triggers, and attribution requirements against the public signaling.