A court in Qatar has sentenced eight former Indian navy officers to death, apparently for spying for Israel. On Monday, India’s foreign minister vowed his country would “make all efforts” to obtain the release of the men.
The government “attaches the highest importance” to the situation, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said, adding that he has visited with the families of the jailed Indians.
The eight were reportedly detained in Doha, Qatar in the month of August 2022. Among them were ex-high ranking and distinguished officers, as well as previous ship captains.
Jaishankar said he understood “the concerns and pain of the families” and that the “government will continue to make all efforts to secure their release” in a social media post.
Neither the charges nor any response from Qatar have been made public.
On Monday, Admiral R. Hari Kumar, head of the Indian Navy, informed reporters that “every effort” was being made by the government to “get relief for our personnel.” Last week, when asked about the sentencing, India’s foreign ministry stated it was “shocked” by the situation.
The eight guys worked for Al Dahra, a firm based in the Gulf that advertises itself as providing “complete support solutions” to the aerospace, security, and defense industries.
It was stated that the men were spies for a “third country” by the Hindu newspaper, while “various reports claimed they were accused of spying for Israel” by the Times of India.
The Israeli government has said nothing about the investigation.
Sister of one of the men Meetu Bhargava denied the claims.
As in, “My brother is 63 years old… Why would he be an Israeli spy? At his age, he shouldn’t be doing anything like this. Bhargava was cited as stating by the Indian Express daily.
She claimed she will seek the “personal intervention” of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Indian officials said last week they will discuss the ruling with their Qatari counterparts and maintain their promise to “extend all consular and legal assistance” to the detainees.
A death sentence in Qatar is considered the same as a life sentence, and the country rarely carries them out.
Amnesty International claims that in 2020, following a 20-year moratorium, the country would execute one convicted Nepalese migrant worker.
Doha, a major supplier of natural gas to India, has good relations with New Delhi and has for a long time. Many Indians make up the majority of the 1.3 million migrant laborers that contribute to Qatar’s total population of 2.8 million.
Mediation efforts between Hamas and Israel have been attributed to Qatar because of the country’s role as host to Hamas’ political bureau and donor to the Gaza Strip.
