A Qatar Airways plane (illustration).

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Matt Rourke / AP / SIPA

Faced with international outcry, the government of Qatar is doing its mea culpa.

Authorities regretted Wednesday that they forced several women to undergo gynecological examinations after the discovery on October 2 of an abandoned newborn.

At the time, agents at Doha Airport disembarked female passengers from a flight to Sydney, then forcing them to undergo these exams to try to determine if any of them had. recently given birth.

Violation of individual freedoms

“Even if the purpose of these urgently decided examinations was to prevent the escape of the perpetrators of a horrible crime, the State of Qatar regrets the distress or the violation of individual freedoms that this action may have caused to travelers. ", Indicates a statement published on a government site.

Prime Minister Khaled ben Khalifa Al-Thani for his part assured that a "complete and transparent" investigation will be carried out.

The results will be "shared with our international partners", continued the head of government.

The incident sparked a diplomatic row between Australia and Doha, with Canberra strongly protesting the treatment of its nationals.

Above all, on Wednesday it appeared that the number of affected aircraft was greater than initially assumed.

Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne said women "on a total of ten planes" had been subjected to forced gynecological examinations, a situation she described as "gravely disturbing" and "rude. ".

A French woman would be concerned

She added that 18 women, including thirteen Australians, were affected.

According to AFP, a French woman who was on board one of these planes is among the victims.

Australian officials have said Canberra is working with other countries to jointly voice their concern over the abuses.

But they refused to name these countries to respect the privacy of victims.

World

Passengers forced to undergo gynecological exam in Qatar after baby is abandoned at airport

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