Elliott Broidy case: US judge calls for law to prosecute countries such as Qatar

A US federal judge has called on Congress to legislate a law that allows prosecution of countries that carry out cybercrime targeting US citizens, saying that the absence of such laws makes it impossible to consider the case filed by Elliott Broidy against Qatar.

The judge refused formally to consider the case because of the lack of jurisdiction of the Court to hear cases in which one of the parties is a sovereign state enjoying immunity, according to Wall Street Journal.

But the judge stressed in his decision a paragraph indicating that there is a pressing need to legislate a law that allows the prosecution of states in view of the repetition of these incidents in recent years.

However, the judge said they would continue to look into such violations committed by the individuals listed in the case.

Broidy said that the ruling does not mean exempting Qatar from its responsibility and called for speeding up of the enactment of the law, which guarantees the security of American individuals and preserves their constitutional rights and personal data from the attacks of countries hostile to them, as he put it.