“This is not – by any standard – normal behaviour.”
Qatar has launched an investigation following the alleged “invasive examinations” of women at Doha airport.
Australian officials have said that 13 citizens and five other women were taken off a number of planes after a newborn baby was found in a bin at Hamad Airport on October 2.
It is alleged that women on 10 different flights were subjected to invasive examinations to determine whether they had given birth to the child.
BBC News reports that Qatar’s government has since launched an investigation into the incident and issued an apology.
They said the discovery of the baby prompted an “immediate search for the parents, including on flights in the vicinity of where the newborn was found.”
“While the aim of the urgently-decided search was to prevent the perpetrators of the horrible crime from escaping, the State of Qatar regrets any distress or infringement on the personal freedoms of any traveller caused by this action,” a statement read.
The investigation comes after multiple women contacted Australian authorities and said that they had been subjected to such examinations without their consent.
Local media has since reported that all women travelling from Doha to Sydney were ordered to disembark one plane and taken to an ambulance nearby. They were then allegedly told to remove their underwear to be examined.
Australian foreign department secretary Frances Adamson told a hearing earlier this week that she was “incredulous” to hear of the allegations.
“This is not – by any standard – normal behaviour and the Qataris recognise that, are appalled by it, do not want it to happen again,” she said.
Qatar’s government has said it will carry out a “comprehensive, transparent investigation” following the incident. They added that the newborn baby is undergoing medical care and is safe.
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