UNHCR deplores violence during demo outside office in Tripoli

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) on Sunday deplored the violence outside its main office in Libya's capital Tripoli that broke out during a demonstration demanding the immediate evacuation of refugees from Libya.

"A small number of demonstrators tried to block refugees and asylum-seekers from entering the premises for services," the UNHCR said in a statement, adding at least three people were attacked.

Protesters have been trying to block access of refugees and asylum-seekers to the UNHCR registration center since Nov. 3, the statement noted.

Many illegal immigrants, mostly Africans, choose to cross the Mediterranean Sea to European shores from Libya, given the chaos and insecurity that have plagued the North African country since the fall of the late leader Muammar Gaddafi's regime in 2011.