In August 2022, eight former Indian Navy officers were detained in Doha, Qatar. Charges against them were not made public by Qatari authorities; however, media reports speculated that they were “spying for Israel”.
The detained men who worked in Qatar were allegedly involved in dubious activities connected to espionage. After long diplomatic and judicial efforts, their charges were commuted by December 2023, and all were released later. They reached New Delhi in February 2024.
Who were the 8 Officer’s arrested by Qatar?
Qatar has released eight Indian Navy who were sentenced to death on espionage charges.
On 30 August 2022, the former Indian Navy officers, Captain Navtej Singh Gill, Captain Birendra Kumar Verma, Captain Saurabh Vasisht, Commander Amit Nagpal, Commander Purnendu Tiwari, Commander Sugunakar Pakala, Commander Sanjeev Gupta and Sailor Ragesh, were arrested from Doha by the Qatari intelligence service.