Dahra Global Technologies and Consulting Services, a private defense consulting firm based in Qatar, made international headlines in August 2022 when eight Indian employees were arrested and charged with passing sensitive documents to Israel. After spending extended periods in solitary confinement, the eight employees—all former Indian Navy officers—were sentenced to death by a Qatari court on October 27. Since Qatar has stringent laws against espionage and disclosing national secrets, the firm has now been shut down and its more than seventy-five Indian employees have been asked to leave the country.
Reports suggest that Dahra Global was advising Qatar’s navy on a program to obtain Italian-made submarines, and at least one of the ex-naval officers had previously worked on submarine projects. Qatar was likely motivated to strengthen its naval forces and pursue the submarine project as a result of the recent blockade, led by Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, UAE, and Egypt from 2017 until 2021, and which posed serious national security concerns for the emirate.
Yet Israel views any attempt by Gulf states to develop military technologies as a threat to its qualitative military edge in the Middle East. Although there has been no history of direct conflict between Qatar and Israel, even though their relations are not cordial. Qatar authorities have kept the details of the espionage case confidential, but there is a possibility that the charged naval officers were acting at the behest of the Indian government to gather intelligence for Israel. Since establishing formal relations in 1992, Israel and India have been deepening their partnership. India has become the largest buyer of Israel’s military equipment since Prime Minister Narendra Modi came into office, and the two states are also expanding their ties through agreements on cybersecurity and co-production of arms.
But if the espionage case was potentially the result of Indian-Israeli defense and intelligence cooperation, sentencing the eight Indian naval officers to death will pose a threat to India’s relations with Qatar. The two countries completed fifty years of relations in last year, with bilateral trade reaching $15.03 billion in 2021-22. More than 750,000 Indian expats, the majority of whom are unskilled workers, live in Qatar and constitute almost twenty-five percent of its population. India also heavily relies on import of petroleum products from the Gulf, and Indian diaspora remittances are a huge boost to the Indian economy.
Even if the naval officers were acting on their own behalf, Gulf states may be hesitant going forward to work with India on defense and intelligence cooperation, or with or firms that employ retired Indian officials. With the recent death penalty decision, the Indian government might also be facing domestic pressure to make diplomatic efforts with Qatar to save the ex-navy personnel. However, it is important to note that Indian government’s immediate response to the decision was feeble—certainly compared to the response to recent Canadian accusations of Indian involvement in killing Canadian citizens on its soil. On October 26, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs said that they were “deeply shocked by the verdict” and planned to take it up with the Qatari authorities. By contrast, India not only completely rejected Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s accusations but called them politically motivated and removed two-thirds of Canadian diplomats in the country.
Finally, the ongoing conflict in Gaza may complicate India’s efforts to lobby Qatar and overturn the death sentences. Since October 7, Modi has expressed complete solidarity with Israel, and India abstained in the October 27 United Nations General Assembly resolution calling for a humanitarian truce in Gaza. These actions can only further degrade New Dehli’s relations with Doha, who hosts senior Hamas officials and has been actively involved in negotiations between Hamas and Israel to reach and maintain the truce. But by failing to bring the former naval officers home, Modi may face domestic backlash—with consequences for his party in the upcoming 2024 general elections.
Muhammad Ali Baig is a Researcher at the Center for International Strategic Studies in Islamabad. He holds a M.Phil. in Defense and Strategic Studies, and his research interests include emerging technologies, strategic stability, deterrence, and military modernization. Follow him on X @alibaig111.
