Mother of detained refugee soccer player Araibi pens plea to Thais

The family of detained Australian Bahraini footballer Hakeem al-Araibi has penned an impassioned plea for his release.

detained Bahraini footballer Hakeem al-Araibi in Bangkok. Picture: AP

The family of detained Bahraini footballer Hakeem al-Araibi has demanded the Thai government immediately release their son in an impassioned letter that accuses authorities of violating his human rights and warns they will be held responsible for his “psychological and physical wellbeing”.

Mr Araibi has been in Thai prisons for almost 11 weeks since he was detained on a wrongly ­issued Interpol red notice last November and is now fighting extradition to Bahrain, the country he fled in 2014 after he was arrested and allegedly tortured for participating in pro-democracy protests.

Footage of the 25-year-old arriving at a Bangkok court in shackles on Monday has intensified public sympathy and outrage.

“As if the pain and bitterness of separation, the longing, worries and fears over the fate of our children, who are abroad, are not enough, we find ourselves faced with the arrest of our child by governments of countries that are supposed to respect human rights,” says the letter, which The Weekend Australian has been told was written by Mr Araibi’s mother.

Thailand has insisted Bahrain’s request must go through the courts, despite the fact Mr Araibi is a refugee.