New Delhi: The death sentence of eight former Indian Navy officials have been reduced by the Court of Appeal of Qatar in connection with an alleged case of espionage, Ministry of External Affairs said on Thursday.

“We have noted the verdict of the Court of Appeal of Qatar in the Dahra Global case on Thursday, in which the sentences have been reduced” MEA said in an official statement.

On October 26, 2023, Qatar court has sentenced eight former Indian Navy officials to death after detaining them for more than a year earlier.

The development comes weeks after Qatar’s Court of First Instance accepted the appeal filed by the Indian government against the death sentence awarded to the Navy veterans.

“The detailed judgement is awaited. We are in close touch with the legal team as well as the family members to decide on the next steps” the Ministry said.

The Ministry said, “Our Ambassador to Qatar and other officials were present in the Court of Appeal today, along with the family members. We have stood by them since the beginning of the matter and we will continue to extend all consular and legal assistance. We will also continue to take up the matter with the Qatari authorities”.

“Due to the confidential and sensitive nature of proceedings of this case, it would not be appropriate to make any further comment at this juncture” it added.

The Indian Nationals were arrested by the Qatari intelligence agency in August 2022, on alleged charges of spying on submarine program on behalf of Israel.

The eight men, were working for Al Dahra Global Technologies and Consultancy Services, a private firm that provided training and related services to Qatar’s armed forces and security agencies.