A senior Iranian official said they are being “held hostage” in Australia.
“They killed more than 165 innocent schoolgirls and now they want to take our female athletes hostage in the name of ‘rescuing’ them?”
Five players from Iran’s women’s national football team, including captain Zahra Ghanbari, have applied for and received asylum in Australia, after which a spokesperson for Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iran called on them to return home.
“Come back, we are waiting for you with open arms.”
The spokesperson of the Iranian ministry, Esmaeil Baghaei, announced on the social network X (Twitter) that the female footballers, who were participating in a tournament in Australia, were being “held hostage” there.
“They killed more than 165 innocent Iranian schoolgirls in a double Tomahawk attack in the city of Minab, and now they want to take our female athletes hostage in the name of ‘rescuing’ them? The audacity and hypocrisy are astonishing,” Baghaei wrote.
“To the Iranian women’s national football team: don’t worry — Iran is waiting for you with open arms. Come home,” he added in a message directed at the players.
The national team faced harsh criticism in Iran after the players refused to sing the national anthem before the match against South Korea. They were later labeled “traitors” on Iranian state television.
Five members of the team were granted asylum in Australia on Tuesday. They had previously secretly left their hotel under the cover of night to seek protection from Australian officials, after which they were taken to a safe house.
Photos have also been released showing the female footballers gathered around a table while Tony Burke, Australia’s Minister for Home Affairs, signs documents granting them permission to stay in Australia on humanitarian grounds.
