Australian authorities have confirmed that two additional members of the Iranian women’s football delegation have accepted offers to remain in the country and will be granted humanitarian visas.
The pair, comprised of one player and one support staff member, have now been reunited with the five other players who were previously granted visas on Tuesday.
Asylum was granted following concerns regarding the team’s safety after they refrained from singing the Iranian national anthem before their match against South Korea last week.
Reports indicate that the remaining Iranian players departed Australia on Tuesday night, local time, two days after their elimination from the Asian Cup.
According to Immigration Minister Tony Burke, the two individuals who chose to stay were separated from the rest of the squad at their hotel on the Gold Coast, after expressing their desire to remain in Australia. They were then taken to a police facility in Brisbane.
Sources indicate that the player is Mohaddeseh Zolfi, and the support staff member is Zahra Soltan Meshkeh Kar.
Minister Burke stated that all seven individuals will be fast-tracked for permanent residency.
He added that the offer to remain in Australia was extended to “most” of the remaining delegation at Sydney Airport before their scheduled departure on Tuesday night.
Burke emphasized the presence of a “very significant” police presence at Sydney Airport to ensure players could speak with officials one-on-one, through a translator, and were given the opportunity to contact their families, free from external pressures.
While none of the other team members chose to accept the offer, Burke noted that one individual boarded the plane “quite late” after conversations with family.
“That individual made their own decision,” Burke said, reiterating that there was no coercion to take the flight.
He also noted that a select few members of the traveling group, believed to be government minders, were not extended the offer to stay.
“There are some leaving Australia who I am glad are not in Australia,” he stated.
The team arrived at Sydney Airport from the Gold Coast on Tuesday evening, where members of the Australian-Iranian community gathered to offer support and protest their return to Iran.
Supporters reported that some members of the team signaled for help.
According to the ABC, Burke stated that Border Force officials had made “multiple representations to the team” before their departure from Sydney, “including private meetings.”
Local media reported that at least one person refused to board their connecting flight to Malaysia en route to Iran.
However, some players, accompanied by chaperones, reportedly told reporters that they wished to return to Iran.
Australia’s humanitarian visa program provides permanent protection to refugees and individuals in need of humanitarian assistance, allowing visa holders to live, work, and study in the country.
The potential repercussions the team and their families may face in Iran following the players’ refusal to sing the national anthem remain unclear.
One conservative commentator on Iranian state media labeled the players “wartime traitors” and called for severe punishment.
The team did sing the anthem in their final two games before their elimination on Sunday, prompting speculation that they were compelled to do so by government officials accompanying them as part of the delegation.
Earlier on Tuesday, activists temporarily blocked a bus carrying team members as it left their hotel on the Gold Coast. Some activists displayed the Lion and Sun flag, the official state flag before the Islamic Revolution in Iran.
Meanwhile, the individuals granted humanitarian visas were moved to a secure location by police after leaving the team hotel.
Burke identified them as Fatemeh Pasandideh, Zahra Ghanbari, Zahra Sarbali, Atefeh Ramazanzadeh, and Mona Hamoudi.
Shortly after their departure, the BBC witnessed some of their minders attempting to locate them within the hotel.
“They want to be clear they are not political activists. They are athletes who want to be safe,” Burke stated, adding that discussions with them had been ongoing for several days.
Addressing the remaining team members before their departure from Australia, he said: “The same opportunity is there. Australia has taken the Iranian women’s soccer team into our hearts. These women are tremendously popular in Australia.”
“Australians have been moved by the plight of these brave women,” Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told a news conference on Tuesday.
“They’re safe here, and they should feel at home here.”
The Iranian players’ situation has also garnered the attention of former US President Donald Trump, who addressed the matter on his Truth Social platform.
He suggested that Australia should “give asylum” to the women, or “the US will take them if you won’t.”
Approximately an hour later, Trump posted again, stating that he had spoken with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, writing: “five have already been taken care of, and the rest are on their way.”
The Trump administration placed all asylum decisions on hold at the end of last year and ceased issuing immigrant visas for citizens from numerous countries, including Iran, citing a desire to end the “abuse” of the system.
In the past year, two groups of Iranians, including individuals whose asylum applications were unsuccessful, were deported from the US back to Iran. Reports indicated that these groups included members of the LGBT community, who face severe legal and social repercussions in Iran.
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