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SYDNEY: An incident at Doha airport in which Australian women were subjected to an invasive runway search after the discovery of a newborn baby abandoned in the terminal was referred to Australian federal police, Australia said.
The women on the Qatar Airways flight, including 13 Australians, were forced to undergo a medical examination in an ambulance on the tarmac after the newborn was found in a bathroom at Hamad International Airport, the television network reported. Seven News.
Foreign Minister Marise Payne confirmed on Monday that the women had contacted the Australian government at the time of the incident, earlier this month, and the Australian government had broached the matter with the Qatari ambassador.
He said that the “extraordinary incident” had also been reported to the Australian Federal Police.
“This is a tremendously disturbing and offensive set of events. It is not something that I have heard happen in my life, in any context. We have made our views very clear to the Qatari authorities, ”Payne told the media.
Hamad Airport issued a statement saying the newborn remained unidentified and was receiving medical attention, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported.
“Medical professionals expressed their concern to officials for the health and well-being of a mother who had just given birth and requested that they locate her before leaving (the airport),” the statement read.
The Australian government expected to see a report from Qatari authorities, who were still investigating the incident, by the end of the week, Payne said.
He said there were significant concerns about consent to medical examination, adding that “these are very private and personal matters.”
An earlier statement from the Australian government said the reports indicated treatment “beyond the circumstances in which women could give their free and informed consent.”
The women received medical and psychological support when they returned to Sydney and underwent the mandatory 14-day hotel quarantine Australia requires for Covid-19 border control, a New South Wales state Health spokesperson told Reuters.
