women’s soccer players
Earlier, sports journalist Raha Pourbakhsh told CNN that at least seven players left the team hotel with five of those having now applied for asylum with the Australian Federal Police. Pourbakhsh, who works for International TV, told CNN that the families of three of those five players who are now safe with police had been threatened and said the whereabouts of at least two other players are unknown after they also left the team hotel.
Pourbakhsh also added that Mehdi Taj, president of the Football Federation, had his visa denied when attempting to travel to Australia to bring the team home with vice president Farideh Shojaei having to travel in his place. In a statement on Truth Social, President Donald Trump said Monday that it would be a “terrible humanitarian mistake” if Australia allowed the team to go back to Iran and that the US would grant the players asylum if Australia did not.
