Qatar

Qatar

The State of Qatar (قطر) is a former British protectorate bordering Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. The country maintains a small military force of approximately 12,000 personnel based on British military structure. Despite the small size of its defence forces, Qatar was a member of the Coalition Forces during the Persian Gulf War (First Gulf War).

Qatar Camouflage Patterns

• The standard camouflage pattern of the Qatari Armed Forces has since the late 1980s been a four-color desert derivative of British DPM camouflage. As all war materiel is imported from other countries, there has been some variability to the design of the uniforms worn as well as the colors printed in the design itself. Seen below are several variations of the pattern; all possess a yellowish tone to the fabric, regardless of manufacture.

• The Internal Security Force (ISF), or "Lekhwiya Force," is a special operations unit tasked with counter-terrorism, VIP protection, riot control, anti-smuggling operations and general stability of the nation. The Lekhwiya units wear a purple colorway DPM pattern camouflage similar to that employed by United Arab Emirates. As with most nations of this part of the world, sources for printed fabric and uniform construction have varied considerably over the years, producing a wide variety of color variations. The versions pictured here are only a sample of what has been issued.

• Qatari military personnel deployed to Lebanon (UNIFIL) in 2006 wearing BDU style uniforms in the French CE camouflage pattern.

• The Qatar Special Operations Command (Q-SOC) has adopted its own variation of DPM camouflage, incorporating dark brown and orange shapes on a sand-colored background. It is believed special operations personnel will continue to wear this pattern despite the adoption of the "splinter" camouflage pattern by the rest of the Qatar Armed Forces.

• Also part of the Q-SOC is a Navy element. This unit wears a blue-purple DPM variant pattern, seen here. The pattern is quite different from that worn by the Lekhwiya Force.

• This DPM-Multicam hybrid pattern was first observed in 2018, although it may have been adopted earlier. The color palette is essentially the same as Multicam, utilizing familiar DPM shapes. This appears to only be worn by the Qatar Amiri Guard units.

• Circa 2015, Qatar introduced a hybrid camouflage design incorporating elements of both pixelated and splinter camouflage patterns. The design retains a similar color palette to the last series of desert DPM uniforms worn by this country and is worn by units with conventional duties in all of the major armed services.

• The Qatar National Service Academy (NSA), a national institute that conducts professional military training for conscripts, has its own camouflage pattern, a variation of the armed services hybrid pattern using a different color palette. The Academy is run the by National Service Authority, which oversees the mandatory period of national service required of all Qatari men between the ages of 18 and 35.

• Elements of the Special Operations Command wear a green-dominant DPM variation, seen here. This pattern was first observed in 2018, although it may have come into use earlier than this.