Five members of the Iranian women’s soccer team have been granted asylum in Australia following a late night operation by Australian Federal Police to smuggle them out of their hotel.
The squad were seen making what appeared to be an ‘SOS’ hand signal on the team bus after their Asian Cup campaign ended on Sunday night before five members escaped from their Gold Coast hotel on Monday night to avoid returning home, where they faced possible persecution.
Iran‘s state media criticised the team for refusing to sing the Iranian national anthem before their Asian Cup opener against South Korea, calling them ‘wartime traitors’ who must be dealt with severely.
Captain Zahra Ghanbari, Fatemeh Pasandideh, Zahra Sarbali, Atefeh Ramazanzadeh and Mona Hamoudi are now under federal police protection at a safe house in Brisbane after authorities slipped the group past heavy security just before 7pm.
The group were granted humanitarian visas by Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke overnight following two days of secret meetings.
It’s understood that at least three other Iranian players are now missing with their whereabouts unknown.
Australian officials met privately with Iranian players after their final Asian Cup match on Sunday night.
‘There has been a lot of work that’s been going on in recent days to make sure that we had the maximum number of opportunities for these women to know that they could seek assistance if they wanted to, and to have maximum number of opportunities to directly seek that assistance,’ Burke told reporters on Tuesday.
Members of the Iranian women’s soccer team have sought asylum in Australia
Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke signed off on humanitarian visas for five players late Monday night
‘In the very early hours of yesterday morning, the conversation started in earnest.
‘Once that happened during the course of yesterday, it was made clear that there were five women who wanted to be able to stay in Australia.
‘I signed off last night for their applications to go onto humanitarian visas, and a little bit after 1.30am this morning, the processing was completed by the Department of Home Affairs.
Burke also recalled the players’ joyous reaction to the news.
‘Once everything had been signed off, there were lots of photos, lots of celebrating, and then a spontaneous outbreak of Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi.’
Burke said that same opportunity applies to the rest of the team still holed up at the Royal Pines Resort.
‘Australia has taken the Iranian women’s soccer team into our hearts,’ he said.
‘These women are tremendously popular in Australia, but we realise they are in a terribly difficult situation with the decisions that they’re making.
‘But the opportunity will continue to be there for them to talk to Australian officials if they wish to.’
‘There were lots of photos, lots of celebrating, and then a spontaneous outbreak of Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi,’ Burke said.
The daring escape sparked wild celebrations outside the team’s hotel on Monday night, despite the rain.
Supporters remained outside on
Earlier on Monday night, President Donald Trump weighed in and pleaded with the Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to personally intervene.
‘Australia is making a terrible humanitarian mistake by allowing the Iran National Women’s Soccer team to be forced back to Iran, where they will most likely be killed,’ Trump said in a social media post.
‘Don’t do it, Mr Prime Minister, give ASYLUM. The US will take them if you won’t. Thank you for your attention to this matter.’
A follow up post simply stated: ‘ASYLUM!’
An hour later, Trump confirmed that he had spoken to Albanese and praised the prime minister for his handling of a ‘rather delicate situation‘.
‘He’s on it!’ he wrote on Truth Social.
‘Five have already been taken care of, and the rest are on their way.
The five members of the squad who escaped have been granted humanitarian visas
Australian Federal Police helped five Iranian players escape from their Gold Coast hotel on Monday night, sparking wild celebrations
Supporters remain outside the Royal Pines Resort on the Gold Coast, where the rest of the Iranian team are currently holed up
‘Some, however, feel they must go back because they are worried about the safety of their families, including threats to those family members if they don’t return.
‘In any event, the Prime Minister is doing a very good job having to do with this rather delicate situation. God bless Australia!’
Albanese later addressed his very positive discussion with Trump.
‘He was concerned about the Iranian women in the soccer team and their welfare and their safety as they return home, he conveyed that to me,’ he said.
‘I was able to convey to him the action that we’d undertaken over the previous 48 hours, and that five of the team had asked for assistance, and had received it and were safely located.’
The Iranian women’s team were seen making what appears to be an ‘SOS’ hand signal after their Asian Cup campaign ended on Sunday night
Donald Trump held late-night talks with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese
Opposition home affairs spokesman Jonathon Duniam commended Burke for intervening.
‘It’s an incredibly sensitive issue when people who are effectively under the custody of a foreign nation and on our soil, and we know there are issues there, there’s only so much that can be said,’ he told Sky.
‘I commend the government more broadly, for what they’ve done. This is the right outcome.’
