8 navy veterans handed death sentence in Qatar

A court in Qatar on Thursday gave the death sentence to eight former Indian Navy personnel held on undeclared charges since August 2022, with the Indian government expressing deep shock at the verdict and saying it is "exploring all legal options".

- Rezaul H Laskar

The sentence was handed down by Qatar's Court of First Instance, and no details were released officially by authorities in Doha. Besides giving a few details, the external affairs ministry declined to make any further comment in view of the "confidential nature of proceedings" in the case against the eight men.

At the time the eight former naval personnel - seven offices and one sailor - were detained, they were all working for Al Dahra Global Technologies and Consultancy Services, a private firm owned by an Oman Air Force officer that provided training and other services to Qatar's armed forces and security agencies. They were believed to have been overseeing the induction of Italian-made midget stealth submarines into the Qatari Navy.

The external affairs ministry said in a statement that New Delhi had received initial information about Qatar's Court of First Instance passing a judgement in the case involving the eight Indian employees of Al Dahra.

"We are deeply shocked by the verdict of death penalty and are awaiting the detailed judgement. We are in touch with the family members and the legal team, and we are exploring all legal options," it said without giving details. "We attach high importance to this case, and have been following it closely. We will continue to extend all consular and legal assistance. We will also take up the verdict with Qatari authorities," the statement said. It added: "Due to the confidential nature of proceedings of this case, it would not be appropriate to make any further comment at this juncture."