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

Myanmar’s military government said it is ready to hand over about 1,000 foreign nationals rescued from cyber scam centres near the Thai border, as authorities vowed to intensify a crackdown against transnational criminal groups.

A group of 200 Chinese nationals plucked from scam centres in Myanmar crossed into Thailand and were flown home on Thursday, as part of a multinational effort to repatriate hundreds caught up in massive internet fraud schemes,