Australian female passengers strip-searched to locate mother of abandoned infant

Thirteen Australian women were "grossly" strip-searched before flying to Sydney from Qatar's capital, earlier this month.

The "disturbing" reports suggest that the women were examined for signs of recently having a child as an unidentified infant was found abandoned in the toilets of Hamad International Airport in Doha.

All the women on the same 2nd of October flight were checked for indicators of being the new mother, witnesses told Australian media outlets. It is currently unclear whether other flights also conducted similar tests.

After all of the passengers had boarded the plane, the women were instructed to leave. They were guided into ambulances parked in car parks and told to remove their underwear before the medical examinations began.

When the women came back onto the plane, male witnesses noted how distraught and upset the women looked.

The Australian government said that the reports show that the "grossly disturbing" incident was "beyond circumstances in which the women could give free and informed consent". Despite this, ministers are not suggesting that the case was sexual assault due to a lack of knowledge of details surrounding the case.

The Foreign Minister, Marise Payne, stated that the Federal Police had been contacted and that the country would respond accordingly after Qatar's officials explained the situation.

Qatar's government has not yet released a statement concerning the incident and the airport has not provided details of the medical examinations nor the number of women that were checked.

So far, Hamad International has stated: "Medical professionals expressed concern to officials about the health and welfare of a mother who had just given birth and requested she be located prior to departing."

Since the baby was discovered, it has been cared for by medical and social workers. The airport is urging anyone with information about the child to come forward.