What do people make of the 14 April update?
[Sydney Morning Herald] states the woman, Aishtan Shakarian, who is accused of damaging the fiber-optic cable, denies doing it. Ms. Shakarian is quoted as saying that she isn't strong enough to have damaged the cable:
"I did not cut this cable. Physically, I could not do it."
The Morning-Herald says that the Georgian Interior Ministry notes that all claims of innocence aside, Ms. Shakarian "has already confessed to cutting the cable."The Herald also states that ".. Georgian Railway Telecom insists that the 600-kilometre cable has 'robust protection' ..."
False confessions under pressure are certainly not unheard of. And some of the alternative causes would have associated with them interests of keeping the real cause obscured. Just how (im)plausible is it that Ms. Shakarian would be able to break the cable?