A plane from the Middle East lands in Germany.
A search was launched for the mother of a newborn baby found in a bathroom at the airport.
Several women said they were taken off their planes and given vaginal exams.
One of those women told Insider that she relives the trauma daily.
On October 2, 2020, when she was sitting on a plane in the Middle East, she was escorted by armed guards into an ambulance on the tarmac, and given a gynecological search against her will.
She is one of many women who are preparing to take legal action against the airlines and the airport.
The women on the flight from Doha to Sydney were all Australians. Insider verified that her last name is known.
According to the country, multiple women were examined because authorities wanted to find the mother of a newborn baby found in the airport's bathroom.
"It was terrifying and I relive that time," said Mandy. I relive it daily.
The airport is in the country of Qatar.
Insider was directed to comment on the government of Qatar. The government, airport, and aviation authority did not reply to Insider.
The UK's Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office supported two British women after the incident, and sought assurances that measures would be put in place to prevent it from happening again.
There are police officers armed.
She said that she had flown from London and was in the middle of transiting to Indonesia.
She said that she noticed that the plane was taking off late. She said that everyone was told to get off.
She said that the passengers were met by "armed police and officials."
They waited, and then a few women from the group were selected.
It was quite intimidating when I was approached. At that point, it felt threatening. I was approached by a female police officer who picked me and two other women and demanded to follow her.
She said she was taken in an elevator and brought to the tarmac, where she was met by more armed police.
A female nurse was waiting for her when she was taken into the ambulance.
I was ordered to lie down on the bed. She asked me to undress from the waist down.
The exam is done.
"I was so shocked that the nurse asked me," she said.
She looked at my genital area to see if I had given birth. It was a fight-or-flight situation.
I thought I would be one of those people that would fight. She said she was frozen.
At this point, she didn't know why she was being searched.
I asked why she needed to check me there when I spoke.
She was told about the baby.
She said she was confused and insulted because she was the only one who was searched and she was older than the other women.
I felt like I had been hit. I didn't give consent. It felt like I was being made to do something, and it was like I was being held at gun point. She said that she felt like that was how it felt.
Three police officers were three feet away from me. It was terrible. It was terrible.
She spent the next few weeks in shock. I felt violated. Absolutely, totally violated.
She was angry when she learned other women were affected.
She said she has been prescribed antidepressants because of the effects of that search and other factors.
She said that she was not the only woman in the world who was subjected to an intrusive search, but that she was the only one on her flight.
A plane. Thomas Pallini/Insider.
According to Damian, women on at least eight more flights from Doha were also taken off, and he believes some of them were examined. The number of women affected is not known.
The New York Times reported last year that the government of Qatar acknowledged that authorities were looking at a number of female passengers. The searches were unacceptable, according to the prime minister.
They were being kidnapped under the impression.
Many of his clients still experience ongoing effects of trauma, and many still struggle with work and air travel.
The Australian women behind the lawsuit compared the violation and humiliation to being raped, according to a letter to the CEO of the airline. The letter has been reviewed by an Insider.
The letter said that they feared for their lives and were expected to be shot.
Many were under the impression that they were being kidnapped.
According to Insider, Sturzaker said that his clients didn't initially want to take legal action, but that the authorities ignored their attempts to talk about what happened and make sure it doesn't happen to other women.
A plane.
Insider was told that the lawsuit would be coming in the coming weeks.
The baby's mother was identified by officials in November as an Asian woman who fled after abandoning the baby. It's not clear what happened to the baby.
"It's actually disgusting how we can be treated like that, because they didn't communicate or apologize," she said.
She wants to make sure it doesn't happen to anyone else. I want to stand up and speak out about this because it can't happen to anyone else.
Business Insider has an original article.
