Outrage as Qatar Airways passengers allegedly strip searched to see who gave birth to abandoned newborn

Outrage as Qatar Airways passengers allegedly strip searched to see who gave birth to abandoned newborn | Secret Flying

Women on Qatar Airways flight strip searched.

 

Australia has demanded answers from Qatar Airways after “grossly disturbing” reports emerged that women on a Sydney-bound flight were strip-searched and examined for signs of having recently given birth.

 

After a newborn baby was found abandoned in a toilet at Hamad International Airport, staff members reportedly removed the female passengers on flight QR908, leading them to an ambulance on the tarmac.

 

Once there, the women were allegedly instructed to strip before being examined, which some experts are saying could be a blatant violation of human rights.

 

The examinations delayed the flight for four hours.

 

A spokeswoman from foreign affairs minister Marise Payne’s office said the Australian government was “deeply concerned at the unacceptable treatment of some female passengers on a recent Qatar Airways flight at Doha Airport”.

 

“The advice that has been provided indicates that the treatment of the women concerned was offensive, grossly inappropriate, and beyond circumstances in which the women could give free and informed consent,” she said.

 

“The government has formally registered our serious concerns about this incident with Qatari authorities. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is engaged on this matter through diplomatic channels.”

 

A male passenger on the flight told ABC that he watched as the women re-boarded the flight after their examinations, noting “many… were upset, one of them was in tears – a younger woman”.

 

Qatar’s government is yet to respond to the incident.