Police in United Arab Emirates are searching for a woman they believe delivered a baby and then strangled it in an airport toilet before catching a flight out of the country.

Local media reported today that authorities were seeking help from Interpol to locate the woman, who was identified using security camera footage, after the baby's body was found in a Dubai airport rubbish bin on Thursday.

The Abu Dhabi government-owned daily The National quoted an unnamed security source saying authorities were searching for an Ethiopian woman in her 30s. Other media said only that she was from an African country.

It's unclear if the woman was a resident in the Emirates, where giving birth outside of marriage is illegal.

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