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India plans to send an airplane to repatriate some 500 of its nationals who fled over the border into Thailand following a military raid on a notorious scam centre in Myanmar, Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said on Wednesday.
Starting last week, the Myanmar military has conducted a series of military operations against the KK Park cybercrime compound, driving a large number of people – mostly foreign nationals who worked there – into the Thai border town of Mae Sot.
More than 1,500 people from 28 countries have fled and are now being looked after in Thailand, according to a statement by local authorities.
Prime Minister Anutin said the Indian ambassador will meet with the head of immigration to discuss speeding up the legal verification process for the 500 Indian nationals ahead of their flight back to India.
"India has asked for cooperation from Thailand, and they don't want this to burden us," Anutin said.
"They will send a plane to pick these victims up… the plane will land directly in Mae Sot," he said.
Earlier this year, India sent a plane to repatriate its nationals after thousands were freed from cyberscam centres along the Thai-Myanmar border following a regional crackdown.
Myanmar's KK Park is a notorious enclave known to international law enforcement and diplomats for its involvement in transnational cyberscams.
The sprawling KK Park compound and others nearby are run primarily by Chinese criminal gangs and guarded by local militia groups aligned to Myanmar's military.
The border areas between Thailand, Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia have become hubs for online fraud since the COVID-19 pandemic, and the United Nations says billions of dollars have been earned from the trafficking of hundreds of thousands of people forced to work in the compounds.
Starting last week, the Myanmar military has conducted a series of military operations against the KK Park cybercrime compound, driving a large number of people – mostly foreign nationals who worked there – into the Thai border town of Mae Sot.
More than 1,500 people from 28 countries have fled and are now being looked after in Thailand, according to a statement by local authorities.
Prime Minister Anutin said the Indian ambassador will meet with the head of immigration to discuss speeding up the legal verification process for the 500 Indian nationals ahead of their flight back to India.
"India has asked for cooperation from Thailand, and they don't want this to burden us," Anutin said.
"They will send a plane to pick these victims up… the plane will land directly in Mae Sot," he said.
Earlier this year, India sent a plane to repatriate its nationals after thousands were freed from cyberscam centres along the Thai-Myanmar border following a regional crackdown.
Myanmar's KK Park is a notorious enclave known to international law enforcement and diplomats for its involvement in transnational cyberscams.
The sprawling KK Park compound and others nearby are run primarily by Chinese criminal gangs and guarded by local militia groups aligned to Myanmar's military.
The border areas between Thailand, Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia have become hubs for online fraud since the COVID-19 pandemic, and the United Nations says billions of dollars have been earned from the trafficking of hundreds of thousands of people forced to work in the compounds.
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