Five members of the Iranian women’s football team have left the team’s training camp and successfully sought refuge in Australia, after fears they could “face dire consequences” on their return to the country.
The office of Iran’s exiled crown prince Reza Pahlavi said he has been told the players – Fatemeh Pasandideh, Zahra Ghanbari, Zahra Sarbali, Atefeh Ramazanzadeh, and Mona Hamoudi – are now in a “safe location”.
The Australian government had come under pressure to protect the team after they were knocked out of the Asian Cup.
The players were reportedly criticised in the Iranian media, with a commentator on Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting saying they had committed the “pinnacle of dishonour” for staying silent during the anthem before defeat in their match against South Korea a week ago.
“Traitors during wartime must be dealt with more severely,” presenter Mohammad Reza Shahbazi said, reported the Reuters news agency.
Some believed the team’s silence was an act of resistance, while others saw it as a show of mourning following the initial US-Israel joint attacks on their country.
The team has not made any specific comment on their stance – but then sang and saluted their national anthem ahead of their defeats to Australia on Thursday and the Philippines on Sunday, raising concerns they had been ordered to do so.
Uncertainty surrounds the team after they failed to progress beyond the group stages of the tournament, while global players’ union FIFPRO said it was “really concerned” about the team’s welfare and had so far been unable to contact the players.
Dozens of people were seen chanting “let them go” as they surrounded the team bus during its departure from the stadium on the Gold Coast, in Queensland, after Sunday’s match, according to the Australian Associated Press.
Police and security teams were also seen creating a safe passage for the bus to leave amid chants of “save our girls”.
Supporters also said they could see at least three of the players on the bus making the international hand signal for help, reported CNN.
Mr Pahlavi, an Iranian dissident in exile in the US, had earlier said the team faces an “ongoing threat” following their “brave act” not to sing the anthem before the game with South Korea.
On social media, he wrote: “As a result of their brave act of civil disobedience in refusing to sing the current regime’s national anthem, they face dire consequences should they return to Iran.
“I call on the Australian government to ensure their safety and give them any and all needed support.”
Iranian players on the bus after the defeat to the Philippines. Pic: AAP/via Reuters
The Australian Iranian Council had previously contacted Australia’s government, urging it to protect the squad members during their time in the country.
It also launched an online petition urging the Australian authorities to “ensure that no member of Iran’s women’s national football team is to depart Australia while credible fears for their safety remain”.
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Foreign Minister Penny Wong declined to comment on whether the Australian government had made contact with individuals.
But she told the Australian Broadcasting Corp: “It has been really moving for Australians to see them in Australia, and (Australia’s women’s team) swapping jerseys with them was a very evocative moment.
“We know this regime has brutally oppressed many Iranian women.”
