Former Chelsea star and former captain of the Ivory Coast national team Didier Drogba joined the international campaign demanding the release of Bahraini footballer Hakeem Al-Araibi, who is currently detained by the Thai authorities with a possibility to hand him to the Bahraini authorities. The Ivorian posted a picture of Al-Araibi on his Twitter account along with the "SaveHakeem" hashtag.

The Bahraini Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement explaining the government's point of view with respect to Hakeem Al-Araibi's case. It said it wishes to receive Al-Araibi from Thailand and that he holds the right to appeal this court decision if present at Bahrain's Court of Appeal.

A Thai public prosecutor on Friday submitted to a criminal court Bahrain’s extradition request for jailed footballer Hakeem Al Araibi, who fled his country amid political upheaval and has refugee status in Australia.

A number of rallies were held in Australia’s Sydney and Melbourne on Friday (February 1, 2019), in solidarity with Bahraini footballer Hakeem Al-Araibi and all Bahraini prisoners of conscience.

30 MEPs sent an urgent letter to the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in particular Thai Minister of Foreign Affairs Don Pramudwinai, in which they expressed their deep concern regarding the arrest of Bahraini player and urged the Thai authorities to release Hakeem Al-Araibia and ensure he returns safe to Australia.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has urged Thailand to stop the extradition to Bahrain of a detained soccer player who has refugee status in Australia, his office said Tuesday.

A leading Thai football club has joined the growing international chorus to free refugee player Hakeem Al-Araibi, who faces deportation to Bahrain where he fears for his life.

Former Australia soccer captain Craig Foster will lobby officials at world governing body FIFA later on Monday for them to intervene on behalf of a Bahraini refugee player being detained in Thailand and facing deportation to his country.

FIFA sent on Wednesday (January 23, 2019) a letter to Prayut Chan-o-cha, the prime minister of Thailand, urging him to immediately release the Bahraini footballer Hakeem Al-Araibi, and demanding discussing Al-Araibi's case with representative from the Thai government.

A former Australian soccer player campaigning to free a Bahraini refugee athlete detained in Thailand wants FIFA, the sport's governing body, to sanction the soccer associations of Thailand and Bahrain if they fail to help.

Greens and the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) say parliament should investigate Australian Federal Police's role in the detention of Bahraini refugee in Thailand, The Guardian newspaper reported.

Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne has reiterated Australia's deep concerns over Thailand's detention of a Melbourne-based refugee footballer in a meeting with senior Thai government figures, reported SBS News.

Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne said she is to meet with Thai Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai to advocate for the safe return to Australia of Mr Hakeem Al-Araibi.

An 18-year-old Saudi woman seeking asylum has left Bangkok airport "under the care" of the UN refugee agency, a Thai official said Monday, following her desperate plea against deportation.

A Saudi woman held at Bangkok airport said she would be killed if she was repatriated by Thai immigration officials, who confirmed the 18-year-old was denied entry to the country Sunday.

The Australian SBS website said that Detained Melbourne-based refugee Hakeem Al-Araibi thanked Australia for supporting him as he fears deportation from Thailand to his native Bahrain.

A member of the British House of Lords called on the UK Ambassador to Thailand to intervene and assist the Australian authorities in ensuring the safe return of Bahraini refugee Hakeem Al-Araibi to Australia.

A former Bahrain national footballer with Australian refugee status must remain in detention in Thailand as he awaits possible extradition, a Bangkok court said Tuesday, as campaigners say they fear he could be "tortured" if returned to the Gulf state.

Like critical football games, Bahrain did its best to arrest football player Hakeem Al-Araibi, revealing the magnitude of the ill intentions it hides for the player currently held in a detention center in Bangkok, Thailand.

A Thai court ruled Tuesday that a soccer player who holds refugee status in Australia can be held for 60 days pending the completion of an extradition request by Bahrain, the homeland he fled four years ago on account of alleged political persecution and torture.