China began repatriating 200 of its citizens who worked in cyber fraud operations in Myanmar, the first batch returning from the centers international groups have said are a nexus of human rights abuses and criminal activity.

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

Efforts to shut down online scam centers in Myanmar appear to gain momentum with a visit by a top Chinese official to the border zone ahead of expected large-scale repatriations of workers in the illi