Australia's Minister of Home Affairs, Tony Burke, announced that players Zahra Soltan Meshkekar, Mona Hamoudi, and Zahra Sarbali decided to return to Iran, rejoining the rest of the team.
The footballers were granted humanitarian visas due to concerns for their safety following an incident at the Women's Asian Cup. During the match against South Korea on March 2, the Iranian athletes refused to sing the national anthem, which drew negative reactions in their country.
Although they had the option to stay in Australia and explore other opportunities, the footballers chose the path of returning to their homeland. This situation attracted the attention of international media and sparked widespread discussion.
