HIGHDIPLOMATIC
Australia grants asylum to 5 Iranian women soccer players who defected from team hotel
·Gold Coast, Australia
Five Iranian women's soccer players escaped their team hotel on Australia's Gold Coast overnight, refusing to return after refusing to sing Iran's national anthem before a match — seen as defiance against the Islamic Republic. Australia Home Affairs Minister granted humanitarian visas. Trump called Australian PM Albanese to confirm they were safe.
Australia granted humanitarian asylum to five members of Iran's women's soccer team who defected from their team hotel on the Gold Coast overnight. The players escaped and lodged asylum claims after their refusal to sing Iran's national anthem before a match was widely interpreted as an act of defiance against the Islamic Republic. Australia Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke: 'They were moved to a safe location by Australian police. I signed off last night on their applications for humanitarian visas. They are welcome to stay in Australia, and they are safe here, and should feel at home here.' US President Trump intervened, posting on Truth Social urging Australia to take in the players and calling Australian Prime Minister Albanese directly. Trump posted: 'I just spoke to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, of Australia, concerning the Iranian National Women's Soccer Team. He's on it! Five have already been taken care of.' The asylum grants add to the fractures inside Iran's social fabric on Day 10 of the war. Iranian athletes, facing a regime under military assault, are seizing opportunities to defect. Iran has not yet publicly responded to the defections.
Sources