Australia shelters Iranian players, some return home

Australia helped two other members of Iran’s women’s football team escape supervision and seek asylum. However, one of them later changed her mind and decided to return to Iran.

According to Australian Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke, the authorities respected her decision. For security reasons, however, the other players had to be moved to a secret location after the Iranian embassy obtained information about their whereabouts.

Tension surrounding the team increased when Iranian state television labelled the players ‘war traitors’ for not singing the national anthem during an Asian Cup match in Australia.

Five players had already been granted asylum. The other members of the team ultimately decided to return home, although according to Burke they were given the opportunity to decide without pressure.

Some of the players were also interested in the possibility of bringing their relatives out of Iran. Concerns about their families appear to have been one of the key factors in their decision.

(reuters, mja)