Several migrants are claiming to have been injured and three of them hospitalised following police intervention during a riot at a detention centre on Tuesday, according to refugee agencies.

The claims contradict a statement by the Home Affairs Ministry which said no one was injured and come on the back of several calls for an inquiry into the police conduct.

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Meanwhile, the UNHCR said this morning the disturbance in Lyster Barracks Detention Centre this week is an inevitable consequence of Malta's detention system, which puts asylum-seekers and other irregular and undocumented migrants behind bars in the same facilities, at times for lengthy periods of time.

It said in a statement that although violence should never be accepted, there were actions that could be taken to prevent tensions that might lead to aggressive behaviour.

"UNHCR is not in a position to assess the police intervention in detail as our staff were not present during the incident. However, we have noted from our routine visit in detention that the use of force resulted in some minor injuries. The goal should be to avoid such situations which present a risk to those held in detention as well as to detention staff and the police.

"This incident is another reminder that there are systemic problems within the current reception system in Malta that need to be addressed, including as regards the way detention is used for asylum seekers, judicial oversight over administrative decisions to detain persons, the separation of groups with different statuses, and further development of capacity and infrastructure in detention centres."

UNHCR said it welcomed the decision to hold an inquiry and it was ready to engage in discussions with the relevant authorities on how practical steps could be taken to improve the current reception system so that incidents such as the one which occurred a few days ago can as far as possible be avoided.