On Thursday 26 October, Qatar sentenced eight Indian former naval officers to death after finding them guilty of spying on the Gulf state’s submarine programme for Israel.
This news has been widely reported by many outlets including the Financial Times, Times of India, and The Indian Express. These sources confirmed that the eight former Indian Navy officers were sentenced to death by a Qatari court on October 26, 2023.
The Indian government “expressed deep shock” at the verdict, adding that “all legal options are being explored”.
Qatar has made no public statements about the convictions, which come as its government plays a crucial role in brokering negotiations between Israel and Palestinian, Hamas.
The Indian government statement said the Officers had been detained in Qatar in August last year.
The officers will be expected to appeal against their sentences.
The verdict comes amid Qatar’s efforts in facilitating negotiations between Israel and Hamas to release civilians among the more than 200 people the militant group captured during its October 7 attack.
So far, four hostages have been released. Doha, the Qatari capital, which hosts Palestinian Hamas’s political office, is now working on securing a deal to free all civilian hostages. Hamas wants Israel to agree to a pause in bombing to allow fuel and other aid into the besieged Gaza Strip.
Hamas’s attack, in which more than 1,400 people were killed, according to Israeli officials, triggered a war between Israel and the Islamist group. Israel has responded by launching an offensive against Hamas which has killed more than 7,000 people in Gaza, according to Palestinian health officials.
The conflict between Israel and Palestine has been ongoing for decades, and the latest escalation was preceded by several incidents of violence and tension in Jerusalem, Gaza, and the West Bank.
Hamas’s recent attack was widely condemned by the international community as a terrorist act.
According to NTI, Israel possesses a covert nuclear submarine fleet, which consists of six Dolphin-class submarines that are capable of launching cruise missiles with nuclear warheads. Israel’s submarine fleet is considered as its second-strike option in case of a nuclear attack by its enemies.
Qatar, the only Gulf state that has a submarine programme, which it launched in 2019 with the help of France and Italy, ordered four submarines from Italy’s Fincantieri, which are expected to be delivered by 2025. Qatar’s submarine programme is aimed at enhancing its maritime security and deterrence capabilities in the region.
The eight former Indian Naval officers who were sentenced to death by the Qatari court on October 26, 2023, were working for a Qatari company called Al Dahra, which was linked to the Qatari military and reportedly advising it on a top-secret submarine programme. The Qatari intelligence alleged that they passed on secret data to Israel.
Qatar is not the only mediator in the conflict, other countries such as Egypt, Turkey, and the US, are also involved in the diplomatic efforts.
Nonetheless, the convictions also risk sparking diplomatic disputes between New Delhi and Doha, thus affecting trade relationships.
India’s external affairs ministry said it attached “high importance to this case and has been following it closely”.
“The ministry will continue to extend all consular and legal assistance and will also take up the verdict with Qatari authorities,” it said in a statement.
Qatar is one of the world’s largest exporters of liquefied natural gas (LNG). India was the world’s fourth largest LNG importer in 2021, with more than 40 percent of stocks shipped from Qatar, according to the US Energy Information Administration.
India already has a long-term LNG contract with Qatar that expires in 2028 and is seeking to renegotiate the terms and prices of the deal. India has also diversified its LNG sources and reduced its dependence on Qatar in recent years.
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