A rescue operation to evacuate Malaysians from countries bordering Iraq will begin as soon as the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) gets airspace clearance, local media said today.

Codenamed 'Operation Stingray', the operation would see RMAF Hercules C130 military transporters flying into Kuwait, Syria, Iran, Jordan and Bahrain, the New Straits Times said.

"The planes will hug the coastline so this will take an estimated six hours instead of the usual two hours if they were to fly straight there," a source close to the operation was quoted as saying by the English language daily.