'Some were upset, angry, one was crying': significant concerns over invasive Doha searches

Aiustralia's Foreign Minister Marise Payne has described an incident at Doha airport, where 13 Australian women were invasively searched without their consent, as a "grossly disturbing" and "concerning" set of events. A group of 13 Australian women were subjected to invasive physical searches without their consent, earlier this month, after reports airport terminal staff in Doha discovered a premature baby abandoned in a bathroom earlier. The incident took place on board flight QR908 from Doha to Sydney on October 2. It is alleged Qatari authorities forced the women to remove their underwear for a genital examination in an ambulance on the tarmac. Sydney lawyer Dr Wolfgang Babeck was a passenger on the 42-person flight. Himself returning to Australia from Germany, he said most of the people on the flight were transitting from various locations in western Europe. "Speaking beforehand, we exchanged some of our stories because many had been knocked back from flights two or three times trying to get home," he said. Dr Babeck said one of the 13 women searched was a mother travelling with her two children. Some of the other women were travelling with partners, while others were alone. "Obviously some were upset, some were angry ... one was also crying," he said of when the women were brought back into the cabin. He said the plane's staff did not appear to know what had occurred. According to a statement from Hamad Airport the baby remains unidentified but is safe and receiving care. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is still seeking information from the women affected and has made counselling and mental health services available for them.<br/>