SYDNEY: Australia has agreed to provide visas to five members of Iran’s women’s team to ​stay in the country after they sought asylum fearing persecution in their home nation.

The announcement came after United States President Donald Trump said he had ‌spoken to Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese about the Iran team in Australia following reports that the players had requested asylum.

The remaining players are in a hotel on the Gold Coast, Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke told a news conference, adding that he had also offered the other team members the chance to stay in Australia.

“I was able to tell ​five members of the Iranian women’s soccer team that they are welcome to stay in Australia, that they are safe here, and they should ​feel at home here,” Burke told reporters.

The Iranian women’s soccer team are in Australia for the Asian Cup tournament.

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”.

Having initially posted 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.

The Iranian team’s 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 from the tournament 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 U.S. will take them if you won’t, ” he added.

Global players’ union FIFPRO said on Monday there were serious concerns for the welfare of the Iran team after they were labelled for refusing to sing their national anthem before a game.

The players’ decision to stand in silence during Iran’s anthem before their first match against South Korea had been labelled by a commentator on Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting as the “pinnacle of dishonour”.

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