Five Iranian Women Footballers Granted Asylum in Australia After Refusing National Anthem

Sydney. The Australian government has granted humanitarian visas (asylum) to five female players from Iran who arrived in Australia to play in the Asia Cup Football tournament. They applied for asylum fearing repression and punishment upon returning to their home country after refusing to sing their national anthem. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced at a press conference in Canberra on Tuesday that the security of these brave women has been ensured and they will now remain safe in Australia. The players granted asylum are Zahra Sarbali Alisha, Mona Hamoudi, Zahra Ghanbari, Fatemeh Pasandideh, and Atefeh Ramezanizadeh. They were rescued by the police from the custody of Iranian government officials on Monday. They are currently being kept in a secret location under police protection. Although Australia has kept the door open for assistance for the rest of the team members, the other players were seen boarding a bus from their Gold Coast hotel on Tuesday. It is not clear where those players went. US President Donald Trump also expressed interest in this sensitive matter. Although Trump initially commented on social media that Australia was making a mistake by sending the players back, he later praised Australia's move after a phone conversation with Prime Minister Albanese. Trump had also stated that if Australia did not keep them, the US was ready to grant asylum to those players. Amidst the ongoing war and political tension in Iran, Trump pointed out the danger that those players could be killed if they returned home. Iranian state television had labeled them as 'wartime traitors' for not singing the national anthem during the first match against South Korea. The Iranian team was playing in the Asia Cup under intense pressure and tension following the death of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in an attack by Israel and the US in Iran. After being eliminated from the tournament with a 2-0 defeat against the Philippines on Sunday, these players decided to seek asylum to save their lives. Australian Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke shared a photo with the players, stating that this was a difficult but necessary decision for them.