Tennis player Peng Shuai “is at home and will appear in public soon,” said the director of a Chinese newspaper affiliated with the government on Saturday amid growing international concerns about the player’s whereabouts.

Citing their own “sources”, Hu Xijin of the official Global Times newspaper tweeted today that Peng “has been staying at home for the past few days because she did not want to be disturbed.”

“She will appear in public soon and participate in some activities,” said Hu in a statement that follows some alleged images of the tennis player released last night -also on Twitter, half banned in the Asian country- in which, surrounded by stuffed animals, she wished for a “happy weekend.”

These are the first images that appear of the tennis player since concern about her disappearance began to grow more than two weeks ago, although it is impossible to determine when and where the photographs were taken.

In the images, retweeted by journalist Shen Shiwei of the state broadcaster CGTN, you can see the tennis player surrounded by stuffed animals wishing a “happy weekend” through the social network Wechat.

The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA), which claimed “verifiable proof” that the player is safe, has yet to comment on these images.

The former number one in the world in doubles is missing since last November 2, she accused former Chinese Deputy Prime Minister Zhang Gaoli of sexually abusing her.

Also the ATP, through its president Andrea Gaudenzi said on Friday that the tennis player’s safety is the priority right now and that it is “vital” that there be some direct contact with her.

Previously, the CGTN television network sent another alleged statement from the tennis player in which she denied the abuses and assured that she was fine.

Both the WTA and other organizations such as Amnesty International and the UN have questioned the veracity of that statement. Earlier this month, Peng, 35 years old and current world number 189, claimed through her Weibo social network profile that Zhang, 75, had sexually abused her, in a post that disappeared from the internet twenty minutes later.

Any reference to the tennis player or the case remains completely banned on social networks and official Chinese media. Peng led the world doubles rankings in 2012 and won Wimbledon and Roland Garros, taking her to the pinnacle of tennis in her country.

US and UN ask China to report the whereabouts and status of tennis player Peng Shua

The United States and the United Nations have joined the demands on Friday to obtain information on the whereabouts and status of tennis player Peng Shuai, who is currently missing after denouncing the sexual harassment of the former deputy prime minister of her country.

Peng has not been seen in public since she accused Zhang Gaoli, a former Chinese vice premier, of forcing her to have sex at his home.

The tennis player, former number one in the world in doubles and double champion of ‘Grand Slam’ in this modality, did so through a publication on the social network ‘Weibo’, which was eliminated after 30 minutes, as well as all traces of mention.

Given this, White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki, has asserted that the US authorities are “deeply concerned” for the reports in this regard. “We join the calls for the Chinese authorities to provide independent and verifiable evidence of his whereabouts and that he is safe,” she claimed.

For her part, the spokeswoman for the UN Human Rights Office, Liz Throssell, has also expressed her concern and has called for an investigation “with total transparency” into Peng’s accusations.

“It would be important to have proof of her whereabouts and well-being, and we would urge a full transparency investigation into his allegations of sexual assault “, has underlined.

For its part, the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) has stated that it is willing to assume the millionaire losses that would result from canceling its ties with China if it does not shed all the light on the case.

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