Qatar Frees Indian Veterans Previously On Death Row

NEW DELHI, (IANS) – India on February 12 welcomed the decision of the Qatar court to release the eight former Indian Army personnel, who were previously sentenced to death.

The Qatar court released all eight former Indian Navy personnel in its custody, out of which seven have returned to India, according to a statement by the MEA.

Earlier, the capital punishment for the jailed Indian Navy veterans was commuted to an extended prison term after diplomatic talks between Qatar and India.

The eight Indian veterans were imprisoned in Qatar in October 2022 after being accused of spying on a submarine program. The Indian nationals were deemed guilty of espionage by the Qatari court and were sentenced to death on charges not yet made public.

The MEA expressed that the ruling of the court was “deeply shocking” and said that they would explore all legal options to get the charges against the former Indian Navy personnel dropped.

The Dahra Global case saw a major development last year when the court in Qatar commuted the death sentence of the Indian nationals after intervention by the Indian government. The sentence was reduced to jail terms.