update ,First published
Five Iranian female soccer players are being protected by police in Queensland after escaping from their team’s handlers to avoid possible persecution in their home country.
Several sources in the Iranian-Australian community said the women were receiving support after being separated from the rest of their delegation in the Gold Coast on Monday night.
“The police have taken them to a safe place,” said Hadi Karimi, a human rights activist based in Brisbane.
“It’s great, it’s amazing.”
Human rights activist Minno Ghamari said she believed the five women had defected from the team and planned to seek asylum in Australia.
The Department of the Interior has been contacted for comment.
The players’ dramatic escape could have major political ramifications as Tehran’s hardline government battles the US and Israel for power in a war that has spread across the Middle East.
Iran’s state television presenter Mohammad Reza Shahbazi accused the team of disrespect for not singing the national anthem before their first match against South Korea on Monday last week, calling them “wartime traitors” who should be “dealt with more severely.”
Shahbazi’s comments raised fears that the women could be at risk if they returned home, even though staying in Australia could also pose a risk to their loved ones in Iran.
The head of the Australian Football Players’ Union previously said he was deeply concerned about the welfare of the Iranian players, as he revealed authorities had been unable to contact the women to ask if they would seek asylum in Australia.
Team members displayed an SOS hand signal from their team bus on Sunday night as lawyers pleaded with the Australian government to do everything possible to allow them to stay in Australia.
The Iranian team, known as the Lionesses, lost their Women’s Asian Cup final to the Philippines 2-0 in Gold Coast on Sunday night.
Footage taken after the match shows at least one woman on the bus signaling for international support to the crowd of protesters outside.
The gesture is done by holding one hand up, tucking the thumb into the palm, and folding the fingers down on it.
Professional Footballers Australia co-chief executive Bev Bush said on Monday: “The reality at the moment is that we are unable to contact the players.
“It’s incredibly worrying, it’s nothing new, it’s really been around since the crackdown really dialed in – February, January, etc.
“So we’re really concerned about the players, but our responsibility right now is to do everything in our power to make sure they’re safe.”
Bosch said it was important to make sure “there’s a bit of pressure to make sure the players are safe, they have some agency as to what happens next, whether they can stay here in Australia or want to come back, how we do that safely, and then obviously they’re incredibly safe when they come back to Iran”.
A small group of protesters gathered outside the players’ hotel on the Gold Coast on Monday, demanding that the Australian government help the Iranian players.
It is not known when the rest of the team will leave Australia, but it is expected in the next few days.
Mobina Foladaband, an Iranian immigrant who moved to Australia to escape oppressive conditions, said the group traveled from Sydney to Queensland to support the team outside Sunday night’s game.
He said the Australian government should do everything it can.
“There’s a war situation, and there’s the Islamic Republic. And frankly, I’m more afraid of the Islamic Republic.”
Exiled Iranian Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi, some of whom want to see a return to lead the country, said in a message to his 2.1 million followers on X on Monday morning: “Members of the Iranian women’s national football team are under severe pressure and constant threat from the Islamic Republic. There should be consequences back to Iran.
“I call on the Australian government to ensure their safety and provide them with all possible assistance.”
More than 71,000 people have signed a petition since Friday calling on the government to ensure no team members leave Australia while there remain credible concerns for their safety.
Iranian-Australian community leaders wrote to Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke on Sunday, urging him to ensure women are fully informed of their legal protections in Australia.
Community leaders told Burke that “there are grave concerns that Islamic Republic officials with the team are closely monitoring and intimidating the players, including giving them false information that they will be sent to a deserted island in foreign custody if they try to seek asylum in Australia”.
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Matthew Knott is the foreign affairs and national security correspondent for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.Connect through X., Facebook or E-mail
