“Australians are touched by the plight of these brave women,” Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said at a news conference in Canberra on Tuesday, a day after police helped free the women from their Iranian state handlers.
– They are safe here and should feel at home – he said.
United States President Donald Trump praised Albanese for allowing the players to stay, saying on social media that the US was ready to take in the players if Australia did not.
Australian officials identified the players as Zahra Sarbali Alishah, Mona Hamoudi, Zahra Ghanbari, Fatemeh Pasandideh and Atefeh Ramezanizadeh. They are in an undisclosed location under police protection, officials said.
Albanese added that help is available to other players who are currently in Australia with the Iranian national team, but that it is up to them to decide whether to accept it.
Television footage showed several other Iranian players leaving a hotel in the northeastern city of Gold Coast by bus on Tuesday afternoon.
Home Secretary Tony Burke posted photos on his X account of himself posing with the five players after granting them visas.
He said the government had held secret talks with the players for days, but admitted that running away was a difficult decision for them.
(Vijesti.ba / FENA)
