Australian refugee footballer Hakeem Al-Araibi will remain in prison until his next court hearing on April 22, a Thai court ruled today.
Both sides have 60 days, that is until April 5, to gather evidence and make their cases, before the court on April 22 to hear from witnesses.
As per the extradition process, Hakeem today denied Bahrain's extradition request.
His lawyers asked for the maximum 60-day period to prepare their case, but the prosecution wanted the case to proceed quickly.
Representatives from 13 countries, and the European Union, were present in the court, in what was initially supposed to be a closed hearing.
Earlier, Hakeem arrived under heavy guard and in shackles.
"Don't send me back to Bahrain," Al-Araibi pleaded with reporters and activists before entering a courtroom on Monday.
Former Socceroo Craig Foster, who has visited Al-Araibi in prison and has been a tireless campaigner for his release, shouted support as Al-Araibi walked by.
"Australia is with you, buddy," Mr Foster said. "Stay strong. All of Australia is with you. Football is with you."
Speaking outside a Bangkok court this morning, Mr Foster, who has visited Hakeem in prison there, accused Bahrain of "using" Thailand, given Hakeem had spent years in Australia without any troubles.
"Clearly they had no issues with him, he was granted asylum," Mr Foster said.
"And yet, we never heard from him, until he went on his honeymoon here to Thailand.
"So Thailand have really been used by Bahrain in this situation."
Today's court appearance is the first step in what could be a long process for the 25-year-old refugee footballer, who has been in detention in Bangkok since November 27.
But because Hakeem is a foreigner, the court is expected to either deny the request, or ask for a substantial amount of money.
The Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network tweeted a message from Hakeem's wife this morning.
FIFPro representative Francis Awaritefe is in Bangkok for the today's hearing, too.
He described Al-Araibi's detention as "opportunistic", and warned of the precedent any potential extradition may set.
"We feel this has big implications for athletes or human rights defenders who might want to travel through Thailand," Mr Awaritefe said.
"It's not just a sports person, it's any refugee who's now in danger of being arrested and extradited back to a regime like Bahrain, and that cannot be allowed to happen."
The extradition case proceeded after the Thai Attorney-General's office considered the Bahraini request submitted last week.
Al-Araibi's lawyers will have 60 days to prepare a case against extradition to Bahrain, where he was convicted to 10 years jail in absentia for his alleged role in a 2012 police station attack.
The Melbourne-based soccer player, was detained on an Interpol Red notice when he arrived in Bangkok on November 27 for his honeymoon, denies the charges.
