One of the Iranian women\u2019s soccer team members granted asylum in Australia changed her mind at the last moment and boarded a plane back home \u2014 while giving up the secret location where her teammates were hiding, officials said Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Striker Mohaddeseh Zolfi, 21, and support staffer Zahra Solton Moshehkar had both joined five others in accepting an offer to stay in safety Down Under, Australia\u2019s Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke announced in parliament Wednesday.<\/p>\n
But \u201cone of the two who had made the decision to stay last night had \u2060spoken to some of the teammates who had left, and had changed her mind,\u201d Burke said, without specifying which of the two it was.<\/p>\n
Australia\u2019s Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke poses with an Iranian women\u2019s soccer team members in Sydney, after they claimed asylum in Australia. AUSTRALIAN DEPARTMENT OF HOME AFFAIRS\/AFP via Getty Images<\/p>\n
\u201cIn Australia, \u200bpeople are able to change their mind, people are able to travel,\u201d he added. \u201cAnd so, we respect the context in which she has made that decision.\u201d<\/p>\n
However, the team member who changed their mind contacted the Iranian embassy \u2014 revealing the secret safe space where all of them were staying, it was revealed.<\/p>\n
The five players already granted asylum \u2014 Fatemeh Pasandideh, Zahra Ghanbari, Zahra Sarbali, Atefeh Ramazanzadeh and Mona Hamoudi \u2014 were forced to move to a new, safe place.<\/p>\n
Iran has accused Australia of taking its athletes \u201chostage\u201d<\/a> after the team member\u2019s sudden about-face.<\/p>\n \u201cThey slaughtered more than 165 innocent Iranian schoolgirls in a double-tap Tomahawk attack in the city of Minab, and now they want to take our athletes hostage in the name of \u2018saving\u2019 them?\u201d Esmail Baghaei Hamaneh, an Iranian diplomat and current Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iran, posted online. \u201cThe audacity and hypocrisy are staggering.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cTo Iran\u2019s Women\u2019s football team: don\u2019t worry \u2014 Iran awaits you with open arms. Come home.\u201d<\/p>\n The Iranian players requested help from the Australian government to remain in the country after their refusal to sing the national anthem at an Asia Cup match last week<\/a> sparked backlash, just as war erupted with the US and Israel<\/a>.<\/p>\n Zahra Ghanbari gives another team member a hug after they were granted asylum in Australia. AUSTRALIAN DEPARTMENT OF HOME AFFAIRS\/AFP via Getty Images<\/p>\n Iranian state media branded them \u201cwartime traitors.\u201d<\/p>\n Australian officials separated team members and staffers from their security at the Sydney airport and offered them a chance to claim asylum in Australia before they boarded their flight back to Iran<\/a>.<\/p>\n Many players asked whether their families would be able to leave Iran and join them if they chose to stay, Burke told reporters in Canberra.<\/p>\n \u201cObviously, when people are permanent residents, there are rights that they have in terms of sponsoring other family members. But all of it only becomes relevant if people can get out of Iran in the first place,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The Iranian women\u2019s soccer team members were granted asylum this week before their return to Iran. AUSTRALIAN DEPARTMENT OF HOME AFFAIRS\/AFP via Getty Images<\/p>\n The players and staff that left have since landed in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, before departing for Iran.<\/p>\n