The homeless migrants have been protesting outside the United Nations office to demand evacuation following comments by President Kais Saied in February that migrants from sub-Saharan Africa were causing crime and represented a "plot" to change Tunisia's demographic makeup. He did not provide any evidence.
Famoussa Koita, a Malian who is recognized by the U.N. as a legitimate asylum claimant, said many people had been waiting two or three years for the agency to settle their cases.
"I saw that my brothers were there, they were blocking the door all around. I called the UNHCR officials. I told them: 'Be careful, you are playing with fire.' From what I see here, they can explode at any time. So it's not good. UNHCR officials should step out and talk to the people (asylum seekers) and give them an appointment," he said.
Earlier this month, the UNHCR announced that it was suspending asylum activities worldwide as it moved to a new registration system.
AFP journalists witnessed police breaking up the encampment outside the Tunis office of the global body's refugee agency as the migrants said they were "not safe" in Tunisia.
Interior ministry spokesman Faker Bouzghaya said the police intervened at the request of the UNHCR and that 80 migrants had been detained.
AFP said the migrants also argued with residents of the plush lakeside neighborhood before being dispersed by police.
"I live in front of this UNHCR (building), and the asylum seekers have been there for more than 25 days. Last year, there was the same situation and they were evacuated. This year, they are here but what happened today is not normal. They are blocking our way. We can't sleep anymore. We can't go out anymore," said Elyes Ben Zakour, a 19-year old Tunis resident.
Many Africans including pregnant women and children living in the North African nation faced a wave of violence and were expelled from their homes and workplaces by landlords fearing fines or prison in the aftermath of the Tunisian president’s speech.
Hundreds of fearful West Africans were flown home on repatriation flights.
Migrants leave after Tunisian police dismantled a makeshift camp for refugees from sub-Saharan African countries in front of the UNHCR headquarters in Tunis, on April 11, 2023.
A group of migrants told journalists in a text message late Monday that they had been "unjustly kicked out of our homes and got sacked from work" after Saied's speech.
"We want to be evacuated immediately to any other safe country that will accept and respect us as human, not a country like Tunisia that don't value us as human," they said.
"We came to Tunisia... for refuge but Tunisia is not safe for us and we can't stay in Tunisia anymore."
After the police dispersed the migrants, an AFP journalist saw UNHCR windows and surveillance cameras broken. Municipal workers removed migrants' tents and cleared away their belongings.
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Tunisian Police Disperse African Migrants Camped at UNHCR Office