Authorities in Thailand and Cambodia have freed 50 Pakistanis along with other foreign nationals in a raid targeting a cyber scam center in Poipet, a Cambodian border town.
The operation is part of an expanding crackdown on human trafficking and online fraud networks in Southeast Asia.
According to Thai government spokesman Jirayu Houngsub, 215 individuals were rescued, including 109 Thais, 48 Indians, five Taiwanese, and three Indonesians. The raid, conducted on Sunday, is considered one of the largest rescues of Thai nationals from scam centers.
Reports indicate that criminal gangs have trafficked hundreds of thousands of people, forcing them to work in online fraud operations. A 2023 UN report estimated that these operations generate billions of dollars annually.
Pakistanis have been among the victims of such trafficking networks, lured by fake job offers. The latest rescue highlights the growing concern over organized cyber scams in the region.
Efforts to combat these illegal activities have intensified, with Thailand recently cutting power, fuel, and internet supplies to scam-linked areas along the Thai-Myanmar border. Meanwhile, China repatriated 621 of its nationals rescued from similar operations over the past few days.