They are among the thousands of people who have been freed from the notorious scam compounds that have thrived on the border for years, in what appears to be the toughest action s

A new crackdown on online scam centers has led to over 7,000 people from around the world being held in a Myanmar border town awaiting repatriation.

China will fly home about 200 of its nationals found in scam-running compounds on the Thai-Myanmar border, a Thai security official said on Tuesday, as part of a multinational effort to crack down on illegal online operations run from the region.

Myanmar has handed over more than 100 Chinese scam centre workers to be repatriated through Thailand, the third batch in a major crackdown on the illegal operations.

An airlift carrying more than 1,000 Chinese nationals who had worked at online scam centers in eastern Myanmar began Thursday, after the rescued workers were taken across the border to Thailand and put on chartered flights to China.

Thousands of foreigners freed from online scam-operating centres in Myanmar are stuck in limbo on the border with Thailand after a multinational crackdown on the compounds run by criminal gangs, three sources told Reuters on Monday.

A sweeping crackdown led by authorities from Thailand, China and Myanmar has dismantled scam centers along the Thai-Myanmar border and freed thousands from nearly 30 countries, but helping them return home remains a big challenge,

Efforts to shut down online scam centers in Myanmar appeared to gain momentum on Monday as a top Chinese security official visited both sides of the Thai-Myanmar border.