Trump calls on Australia to give asylum to Iranian women's soccer players

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said on Monday (Mar 9) he had spoken to Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese about the Iran women's soccer team after reports that five players had sought asylum in Australia.

Iran's semi-official Fars news agency said five players in Australia for the Asian Cup secretly left the team hotel with Australian police, and media reports said they were seeking Australian government assistance after "breaking free".

After initially posting on social media that Australia was "making a terrible humanitarian mistake" by allowing the team to be sent back home, Trump said in a later post that he had spoken to Albanese and that the Australian leader was "doing a very good job having to do with this rather delicate situation".

Trump said five members of the Iran squad "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," he said.

Australia's SBS News said five players from the Iranian women's team were now under the protection of the Australian Federal Police, seeking assistance from the government. It said government sources had confirmed the reports, adding that Australia's Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke had flown to Brisbane to meet with the women.

The Iranians' campaign in the Australian-hosted Asian Cup tournament started just as the US and Israel launched air strikes on Iran, killing the Islamic Republic's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. They were eliminated on Sunday after losing 2-0 to the Philippines.

In his earlier post Trump said members of the team would "likely be killed" if forced to return to Iran. "The