Colombo, April 8 - The military government in Myanmar has reportedly cited that the rescue of 48 Sri Lankans held captive by cyber crime operators in the Myawaddy area has proven to be challenging since that is controlled by ethnic armed groups, an informed source said.

Altogether 56 Sri Lankan victims of cyber crimes had been held and eight of them were rescued. Currently, paper work is underway to send them back to Sri Lana via Thailand since the transportation of them by road to Yangon from Myawaddy in Myanmar to be flown back to the country is challenging. The area in between remains uncleared .

However, the source familiar with the process said that the rescue of the remaining 48 Sri Lankans had become challenging as informed by the military government of Myanmar. According to the source, such a rescue effort will involve military operation even putting the lives of these people in peril.

The military government has sought further time as a result to work out a strategic approach to rescue them.

The Sri Lankan government has exhausted all the diplomatic avenues to engage the government in Myanmar. This includes a special diplomatic note sent by President Ranil Wickremesinghe to Myanmar Prime Minister Senior General Min Aung Hlaing asking for assistance to get them released as early as possible.

Besides, scores of other Sri Lankans who indulge in various nefarious activities in the the cyber crime region have not expressed willingness to get back to Sri Lanka. However, the source said the exact number of such Sri Lankans cannot be ascertained at the moment.