The players from the Afghanistan Women’s football were safely evacuated from Kabul, among 75 others as announced by FIFPRO on Tuesday.
Since the Taliban took over the reins, there have been palpable fears regarding the fate of the members of the national team. Thankfully, the global players union FIFPRO announced that they were safely evacuated.
They thanked the Australian government for their efforts in making the evacuation of players, team officials, and family members possible in these present circumstances. There is work to help more people leave Afghanistan.
The union said in a statement, “These young women, both as athletes and activists, have been in a position of danger, and on behalf of their peers around the world we thank the international community for coming to their aid.”
The women’s football team was created in 2007 and has since acted as a symbol of defiance against the conservatism of the Taliban.
Players in the team were already advised to delete posts from social media and team photos, as there was fear of reprisals after the fall of the United States-backed government.
Khalida Popal, who was the former captain of the team, has been involved with a FIFPRO team of lawyers and experts. They have worked with authorities from over six countries which include the United States, the UK, and Australia to get players and officials on the evacuated list and help them fly out safely.
She said that the women footballers have been courageous and strong in this moment of crisis and hope that they can have a better life outside Afghanistan. She added that the last few days have been stressful but this was a great “victory” for them.
FIFPRO general secretary Jonas Baer-Hoffmann said that the evacuations have been incredibly complex and add that their hearts go out to the people who are still stuck there.
