Earlier this week, Qatar's Government Communications Office (GCO) confirmed that His Excellency the Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz Al Thani had directed to launch a comprehensive, transparent investigation into an incident that happened at Hamad International Airport (HIA) recently.

The incident involved the abandonment of a newborn baby who was left "in a trash can, concealed in a plastic bag, buried under garbage" at the airport, the GCO had mentioned. The baby was rescued from "what appeared to be a shocking and appalling attempt to kill her."

Following this, an immediate search for the parents, including on flights in the vicinity of where the newborn was found, was launched. The search operations included examining a number of female passengers at the airport.

Yesterday, the GCO revealed the preliminary findings of the investigation stating that "standard procedures were violated."

HE the PM regretted 'the unacceptable treatment of the female passengers at HIA.' He further assured that Qatar will hold those responsible for these acts to account.

Today,  Senator the Honourable Marise Payne, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Women of the Commonwealth of Australia and HE Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the State of Qatar, held a telephone call on October 30, 2020, to discuss the HIA Incident.

HE Qatar’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs expressed his deepest sympathies with the women impacted by the search at the airport and renewed the State of Qatar’s apology to them, stating that the incident is considered a violation of Qatar’s laws and values and that the officials involved have been referred to the Public Prosecution Office.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs expressed his deepest sympathies with the women impacted by the search at the airport and renewed the State of Qatars apology to them. #QNA

— Qatar News Agency (@QNAEnglish) October 31, 2020

HE the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs assured Australia’s Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Women of Qatar’s commitment to the safety and security of all passengers travelling through HIA.

Commenting on the measures taken, Minister Payne thanked Minister Al-Thani for Qatar’s commitment to bring a meaningful resolution to the case, expressing Australia’s satisfaction with these initial steps taken by the State of Qatar to address the matter.

Minister Payne said she looked forward to the State of Qatar sharing the report into the matter.  Minister Payne expressed her confidence that the Qatari government will hold the officials involved accountable in a fair, just and proportionate manner.

The two Foreign Ministers agreed to continue to monitor the case closely and exchange updates, assuring that this is a top priority for both governments.

Furthermore, the two Ministers underscored the strong bilateral ties between the State of Qatar and the Commonwealth of Australia and discussed ways to enhance this partnership in all fields of cooperation.

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Source: Foreignminister.gov.au