President Donald Trump on Monday took to social media to press for the security of the Iranian national women’s soccer team, raising alarm that players would “most likely be killed” if they had to return to Iran after staying silent during the country’s national anthem at the Asian Cup.
[time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”]The President said in a Truth Social post that he had spoken to Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, whose country hosted the soccer competition, after Trump publicly pushed the country to safeguard the Iranian players.
“I just spoke to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, of Australia, concerning the Iranian National Women’s Soccer Team. He’s on it!” Trump said. “Five have already been taken care of, and the rest are on their way. Some, however, feel they must go back because they are worried about the safety of their families, including threats to those family members if they don’t return.”
“In any event, the Prime Minister is doing a very good job having to do with this rather delicate situation,” Trump continued. “God bless Australia!”
In an earlier post Monday morning, Trump was more critical of the Australian government, suggesting that the country wasn’t doing enough to protect the Iranian team—and pledged that the U.S. would take in the players if Australia didn’t grant them asylum.
“Australia is making a terrible humanitarian mistake by allowing the Iran National Woman’s Soccer team to be forced back to Iran, where they will most likely be killed,” Trump said in an earlier Truth Social post. “Don’t do it, Mr. Prime Minister, give ASYLUM. The U.S. will take them if you won’t.”
The soccer team traveled to Australia last month for the Women’s Asian Cup. On Sunday, the squad lost its final group match against the Philippines, meaning that they would not be advancing in the championship and would be departing the country. The team’s head coach, Marziyeh Jafari, told the Australian Associated Press that the squad members “want to come back to Iran as soon as we can,” according to The Associated Press.
But The Athletic reported that five team members have defected and are in a safe house under the watch of the Australian Federal Police. According to individuals with knowledge of the operation who spoke to The Athletic on the condition of anonymity, the Australian authorities helped the five players leave their hotel on Monday, after the team’s loss against the Philippines.
Iran and the surrounding region have been immersed in war since Feb. 28, when the U.S. and Israel launched a wave of military strikes against Iran. Last week, the Iranian women’s soccer team remained silent as their national anthem played ahead of their opening match against South Korea. Iranian state media criticized the players for the move, calling them “wartime traitors,” according to The Athletic. The squad didn’t specify the motive for their silence during the anthem, and the players sang the anthem in their following two games.
The criticism the players received for their silence during the national anthem sparked concerns for their safety. The Australian Iranian Council started an online petition, which had garnered more than 74,000 signatures as of Monday, urging Australian officials to “ensure that no member of Iran’s women’s national football team is to depart Australia while credible fears for their safety remain” and “ensure that any player wishing to seek protection can do so safely, privately, and without interference from regime-associated officials or handlers.”
“Where credible evidence exists that visiting athletes may face persecution, imprisonment, coercion, or worse upon return, silence is not a neutral position,” the petition reads. “The current wartime environment has intensified repression, fear, and the risks faced by anyone publicly perceived by the Islamic Republic as disloyal and a ‘traitor.’”
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