Tripoli, Dec 10 (IANS): The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has called for the orderly release of refugees and asylum-seekers held in detention centres in Libya.

"UNHCR teams distributed today blankets and mattresses to some 100 refugees and migrants in dire need of relief items," the agency's Libya unit tweeted on Wednesday.

It reiterated a call for "the orderly release of all refugees and asylum-seekers held in Libyan detention centres", reports Xinhua news agency.

Thousands of illegal immigrants, mostly Africans, chose to cross the Mediterranean from Libya towards Europe, due to the state of insecurity and chaos in the North African nation following the fall of former leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.

Immigrant shelters in Libya are crowded with thousands of immigrants either rescued from the sea or arrested by the Libyan security forces, despite international calls to close those centres.

According to the UNHCR, there are currently 44,725 registered refugees and asylum-seekers in Libya.