20110318
reuters

GENEVA, March 18 (Xinhua) -- UNHCR staff had recorded an increase in the number of Libyans fleeing into Egypt in the past few days, as government forces continued to push eastwards, the UN Refugee Agency said here on Friday.

"The events in the coming days will be critical in determining whether mass displacement from the eastern part of Libya takes place," said UNHCR spokesperson Melissa Fleming in a press conference held at UN headquarters in Geneva.

Many people were fleeing for fear of being caught up in the combat. Fleming said it was possible the current conflict could cut off the refugees' access to safe places and passage out of the country.

The UN refugee agency said it was ready to work with the Egyptian government to prepare for a massive influx of people fleeing the violence in Libya.

UNHCR and its partner, the International Organization for Migration (IOM), had repatriated more than 50,000 people stranded at border camps, through their joint evacuation program for migrant workers fleeing Libya to Tunisia and Egypt.

According to an estimation by IOM, there were still more than 1 million migrant workers remaining in Libya. Many of them were from sub-Saharan Africa countries.