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Qatar Airways avoids Australian lawsuit over women's invasive examinations

www.bbc.com Qatar Airways avoids Australian lawsuit over women's invasive examinations

Five Australian women and others were searched in Doha in 2020 after a newborn baby was found in a bin.

Qatar Airways avoids Australian lawsuit over women's invasive examinations

Five Australian women who were strip-searched and invasively examined at Doha airport have failed in their bid to sue Qatar Airways.

They and other women were ordered off a flight and checked for whether they had given birth after a baby was found abandoned in an airport bin in 2020.

The incident sparked public outrage and it was condemned by several nations.

An Australian court found the state-owned airline could not be prosecuted under the laws governing global travel.

The five women filed a claim in the Federal Court of Australia in 2021, seeking damages over the alleged "unlawful physical contact" and false imprisonment, which had caused mental health impacts including depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. Other passengers - including from the UK and New Zealand - were not part of the lawsuit.

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