Jordanian terror suspect Abu Qatada could be freed on bail by the end of the month.
Qatada, described by a judge as Osama bin Laden's right-hand man in Europe, will have his application for bail heard by a senior immigration judge on May 28, the Judicial Communications Office said.
The radical cleric is being held in a high-security prison while he fights deportation to Jordan over terror charges.
A Home Office spokeswoman said: "We believe Qatada poses a real risk to national security and will continue vigorously to resist any application for him to be bailed."
Qatada's 10-year battle against deportation is in the hands of the British courts after the 51-year-old lost his attempt to make a final appeal to Europe's human rights judges earlier this month.
His lawyers immediately applied for him to be released on bail as it looks likely that deportation proceedings will still take many months.
The political situation in Jordan has also worsened in recent months, casting fresh doubt on the UK's ability to deport him, they claim.
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