Charges have been filed against Qatari police officers who oversaw an invasive search of dozens of women at Doha airport last month, the country said on Monday.
Qatar's public prosecutions office did not say how many officers faced legal action or what charges were being applied in the case.
On October 2, police at Doha's Hamad International Airport stopped women on as many as 10 flights and carried out what was described as an invasive search after a newborn baby was discovered abandoned in an airport bathroom.
The incident sparked an international backlash with Australian ministers condemning the action against the women, that included two British and 13 Australian citizens on one of the flights, and demanding action be taken.
"I was incredulous that this could have happened," Australia's foreign department secretary Frances Adamson told a Senate hearing on October 28. "This is not – by any standard – normal behaviour and the Qataris recognise that, are appalled by it, do not want it to happen again."
However, the Qatari prosecutors said they were investigating the "external examination of female passengers," contradicting Australian officials and the accounts of several women involved who described being made to undress.
Women aboard the flights have described being ordered off planes and taken to an ambulance on the tarmac or interrogation rooms and strip searched.
The prosecutors said police officers acted unilaterally and face "penalties of a maximum of three years".
Qatari officials said the searches were conducted to find the mother of the newborn child found abandoned in a rubbish bin in an airport bathroom.
The prosecutors said they had identified the parents of the abandoned child and were also filing charges against the couple the authorities described as being from "Asian countries" – a term Qatar often uses to refers South Asian nations where a large number of its migrant workers are from.
The prosecutor alleges that the mother messaged the father telling him she had just given birth and that she was abandoning the child and leaving the country.
"The father of the infant admitted that he had a relationship with the infant's mother and that she had sent him a message and a photo of the newborn infant immediately after her birth," the prosecutor said.
It was not clear what charges the father faced or what motivated the woman to attempt to leave the country. The baby girl is being taken care of by the Qatari authorities.
Roll of honour 2019-2020
Dubai Rugby Sevens
Winners: Dubai Hurricanes
Runners up: Bahrain
West Asia Premiership
Winners: Bahrain
Runners up: UAE Premiership
UAE Premiership
}Winners: Dubai Exiles
Runners up: Dubai Hurricanes
UAE Division One
Winners: Abu Dhabi Saracens
Runners up: Dubai Hurricanes II
UAE Division Two
Winners: Barrelhouse
Runners up: RAK Rugby
Gothia Cup 2025
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When Umm Kulthum performed in Abu Dhabi
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Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sept 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
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GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
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