MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Another three members of the Iran's women’s soccer team who accepted refugee visas to stay in Australia have decided to return to their homeland, an Australian government minister said on Sunday.
The departure leaves three of an initial seven squad members in Australia.
“Overnight, three members of the Iranian Women’s Football Team made the decision to join the rest of the team on their journey back to Iran,” Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said in a statement.
“After telling Australian officials they had made this decision, the players were given repeated chances to talk about their options,” Burke added.
Iran's team arrived in Australia for the Women’s Asian Cup last month, before the war in the Middle East began on Feb. 28.
Initially, six players and a support staff member from a squad list of 26 players accepted humanitarian visas to stay in Australia before the rest of the Iranian contingent flew from Sydney to Malaysia on March 9.
Another later changed her mind and left Australia. Three left Sydney for Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on Saturday night, a government official said. The rest of the team has remained in Kuala Lumpur since they left Australia.
Iran's Tasnim News Agency said the latest three to leave Australia were two players and the support staff member. The three were “returning to the warm embrace of their family and homeland,” the news outlet said in a statement.
Concerns about the team's safety in Iran heightened when the players didn't sing the Iranian national anthem before their first match.
The Australian government was urged to help the women by Iranian groups in Australia and by U.S. President Donald Trump.
The Iranian news agency described the women's return to the team as the “disgraceful failure of the American-Australian project and another failure for Trump.”
Treasurer Jim Chalmers, one of the most senior members of the Australian government, said he was pleased that three of the Iranian women would remain in Australia.
“I am worried about them,” Chalmers told Seven Network television, referring to the women who had changed their minds about staying in Australia.
“I can only image the pressure that they feel and how difficult these sorts of decisions would be for them,” Chalmers added.
Burke said Australians should be proud that their country presented the Iranian team with choices and sought to help them.
“While the Australian government can ensure that opportunities are provided and communicated, we cannot remove the context in which the players are making these incredibly difficult decisions,” Burke said.
“The Australian government has done everything we could to make sure these women were provided with the chance for a safe future in Australia,” he added.
Australian Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke speaks to the media during a press conference at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (Lukas Coch/AAPImage via AP)/AAP Image via AP)
WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge in Massachusetts on Tuesday struck down several Trump administration actions slowing down development of clean energy, including a requirement that all solar and wind energy projects on federal lands and waters be personally approved by Interior Secretary Doug Burgum.
Chief Judge Denise J. Casper of the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts ruled that a coalition of plaintiffs representing wind and solar developers were likely to succeed on the merits of their claims that the administration's actions violate federal statute and will cause irreparable harm if the court did not intervene.
She issued a preliminary injunction to stop the administration from implementing the policies, which clean energy advocates said would hamstring projects that need to get underway quickly to qualify for expiring federal tax credits.
The Interior Department in July said that all solar and wind energy projects on federal lands and waters must be personally approved by Burgum, a layer of enhanced oversight that officials said was needed to end what they said was preferential treatment for these technologies under the Biden administration. Burgum's order authorized him to conduct “elevated review” of renewable projects, from proposed leases to rights of way, construction and operational plans, grants and biological opinions.
A coalition of regional wind and solar developers sued Burgum and other federal officials in December, saying his actions had the “goal and effect of destroying solar and wind energy” proposals in the United States. They accused Burgum of favoring fossil fuels such as oil and natural gas and said he had intentionally changed longstanding agency processes and legal determinations to delay and prevent the permitting and construction of wind and solar facilities. The lawsuit challenged six final agency actions that it says place wind and solar technologies into “second-class status.”
An Interior spokesperson said Tuesday the department does not comment on litigation, but added: “America sets the global standard for energy production. We do it cleaner, safer, and more reliably than anywhere in the world.”
In his second term, President Donald Trump has focused U.S. energy production on fossil fuels, which he says will lower costs for families, increase reliability and help the U.S. maintain global leadership in artificial intelligence. Critics say that change continues U.S. dependence on more polluting energy sources and sets the country apart from a world transitioning toward cleaner energy.
A law approved last year by the Republican-controlled Congress phases out tax credits for wind, solar and other renewable energy while enhancing federal support for coal, oil and natural gas. Three days after signing the law, Trump issued an executive order that further restricts subsidies for what he called “expensive and unreliable energy policies from the Green New Scam.”
The plaintiffs said in a joint statement Tuesday that the ruling is the first of many steps to bring more affordable energy options to people across the country.
“Clean energy is fast, affordable and here to stay,” the statement said. “We look forward to getting back to work and restarting the impacted wind and solar projects nationwide.”
The plaintiffs are: the Alliance for Clean Energy New York, MAREC Action, Southern Renewable Energy Association, Clean Grid Alliance, Interwest Energy Alliance, Renewable Northwest, Carolinas Clean Energy Business Association, RENEW Northeast and Green Energy Consumers Alliance.
Kit Kennedy, managing director for power at the Natural Resources Defense Council, said the Trump administration keeps trying new ways to block the clean energy projects needed to power the grid, and the courts keep striking them down.
“The administration should take the hint and stop these illegal attacks on projects that will help meet surging electricity demand and bring down costs for consumers,” Kennedy said in a statement.
McDermott reported from Providence, R.I.
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Department of Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, testifies before the House Appropriations Committee's budget hearing on Capitol Hill, Monday, April 20, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
