Source : the age
After making a brave escape from their team’s managers, five Egyptian female football players are being protected by authorities in Queensland to prevent being sent back to their home countries, where they are likely to face harassment.
US President Donald Trump stepped up immediately after learning about the escape by speaking with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and first demanding on social press that Australia grant the ladies prison.
” He’s on it”! Trump posted a response to their talk. Five have already been treated for, and the remainder are headed their approach. Some, nevertheless, believe they may return because they are concerned about the security of their people, including threats to those families if they don’t.
The prime minister does a very good job of handling this delicate position in any case.
Less than two hours earlier, Trump had warned Albanese that if he had allowed the group to be forced to return to Iran, and that he had offered to give the people hospital in the US if Australia did not, that he would be making a “terrible charitable mistake.”
The ladies were receiving help after being separated from the rest of their committee at their Gold Coast resort on Monday night, according to various sources in the Iranian-Australian neighborhood.
Officers have taken them somewhere secure, according to Brisbane-based human rights activist Hadi Karimi. It’s fantastic and incredible.
Minoo Ghamari, a human rights activist, stated that she understood that five ladies had left the team and intended to request asylum in Australia.
On Tuesday, Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke is scheduled to address the subject in public. The Department of Home Affairs is likely to grant the ladies bridging permits to keep them in Australia while any refugees ‘ applications are processed.
Everyone is so glad for the ladies, they say. If they had returned home, they wouldn’t have been safe, said Shahzad Shirkhanzadeh, a prominent part of the Iranian-Australian area.
She praised the administration for making an immediate effort to allow the people to seek asylum in Australia before being forced to flee Iran.
Members of Australia’s Egyptian community danced and sang on the street at the Gold Coast place where they had held a crew celebration as reports of the avoid emerged.
On Monday evening, activists reported that Egyptian officials were searching the Royal Pines Resort’s hall and grounds.
In a Middle Eastern war that has spread throughout the region, the athletes ‘ dramatic escape has potential for significant political implications as Tehran’s hardline government struggles to hold onto power against Israel and the United States.
Mohammad Reza Shahbazi, a broadcaster of Egyptian state television, last year criticized the group for not playing the country’s music on Monday before their opening game against South Korea, calling them “wartime criminals who must be” dealt with more seriously.
Shahbazi’s comments heightened worries that the women’s return to their homes might be in danger, even though staying in Australia might also pose a threat to Iranians ‘ loved ones.
The head of the soccer players ‘ union in Australia earlier expressed his deep concern for the Iranian players ‘ safety after revealing that officials have been unable to get in touch with the women about whether or not they want to seek asylum in Australia.
As advocates pleaded for the Australian government to do everything in their power to allow them to remain in Australia, members of the team gave what appeared to be an SOS hand signal from their team bus on Sunday night.
The Lionesses, an Iranian team, lost to the Philippines on Sunday night in their final match of the Women’s Asian Cup on the Gold Coast.
At least one woman appears to be posing as the international help sign to a crowd of protesters outside the game in footage taken after the game.
The gesture involves folding the fingers down over one hand while keeping the other up, inserting the thumb into the palm, and pressing the other.
Reza Pahlavi, the exiled ruler of Iran, made the announcement in a message to his 2.1 million followers on X on Monday night, saying:” These five courageous athletes, currently in a safe location, have announced that they have joined Iran’s national Lion and Sun Revolution.” Some diaspora members would like for the country to see him return to lead the country.
Before the 1979 Islamic Revolution, the lion and sun flag served as a form of resistance to the current regime.
As the situation is changing, this masthead has chosen to ignore the women who have been identified by Palavi for the time being.
He earlier on Monday urged the Australian government to assist the women, warning that their refusal to sing the anthem “were a sign of civil disobedience.” They were facing “dangerous consequences” for their act of civil disobedience. He thanked Trump for his intervention over the course of the night.
Before the women escaped, Beau Busch, co-chief executive of Professional Footballers Australia, said:” The reality is that we’re unable to contact the players at this time.
” That’s incredibly concerning, that’s not a new thing, that’s really been there since the repression really started to wane, sort of in February or January,” he said.
We’re really worried about the players, so we’re doing everything we can to make sure they’re safe, right now.
At least 20 women appear to be playing for the team, including substitutes, and it’s not known when the rest of the team will depart from Australia.
Iranian airspace is still closed, and it’s unclear when and how they’ll fly back home and what will the consequences be.
Mobina Fouladband, an Iranian immigrant who fled oppressive conditions to escape being forced to immigrate to Australia, claimed the group had traveled from Sydney to Queensland to show their support for the team after the team lost on Sunday night.
The Australian government should do everything in its power, she said.
” There is the Islamic Republic there, and there is the war situation there.” And to be honest, I’m more concerned about the Islamic Republic.
Australians are watching the Lionesses as they play their matches on the Gold Coast under the strict supervision of traveling officials because of the plight of the Lionesses, who arrived in Australia just a few days before the US launched its first attack on Tehran on February 28.
According to a parliamentary inquiry, their entourage included Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps suspected members.
The Matildas and the Lionesses swapped jerseys on Friday, when Australia defeated Iran 4-0, and Sam Kerr, the country’s captain, paid homage to their hardships and bravery.
Since Friday, more than 71, 000 people have signed a petition asking the government to make sure no team member leaves Australia despite persistent concerns for their safety.
On Sunday, Iranian-Australian community leaders wrote to Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke to demand that he be sure the women were fully informed about their legal protections in Australia.
The community leaders told Burke that there were” serious concerns that Islamic Republic officials accompanying the team are closely monitoring the players and are intimidating them, including providing them with false information that they would be detained in an “desolate island” if they attempted to seek asylum in Australia.”
Read more about the US-Israel-Iran conflict.
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Matthew Knott is The Sydney Morning Herald’s and The Age’s correspondent for foreign affairs and national security. Connect via X, Facebook, or email.
The Age and Sydney Morning Herald’s North American correspondent, Michael Koziol. He was formerly a reporter for the Sun-Herald, a deputy editor for Sydney, and a federal political reporter for Canberra. Connect via email or X.
