According to Amnesty International: "TORTURE AND ILL-TREATMENT BY MALIAN ARMY Amnesty International collected a number of testimonies and other evidence indicating that Malian military forces were responsible for torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment while arresting individuals because of alleged links with the armed groups. Amnesty International was able to meet more than 80 detainees, including children in Bamako; many of them gave testimonies about the ill-treatment and torture they were subjected to by some members of the Malian army. Amnesty International was, in many cases, able to corroborate their testimonies through physical observation of injuries. [...] Home to 6,000 inhabitants, the Kadji village is located on the banks of the Niger River a few kilometers south of the town of Gao. The Dar Es-Salam neighborhood of Kadji - located on an island on the Niger River - has been suspected to be a stronghold for MUJAO. Allegations have also been made that the neighborhood’s inhabitants have protected MUJAO members since the beginning of the joint French and Malian military intervention in the North in January 2013. On the 28 February 2013, the Malian army conducted a raid on Kadji. The French Ministry of Defense said that this operation in Kadji was conducted in cooperation with French forces that left the area at the end of the day.2 The following day, on the 1 March 2013, Malian forces looted some houses while searching for weapons and members of armed groups, and arrested at least 70 people. These individuals were detained for between 7 and 18 days at the gendarmerie of Gao, without charge, and released without trial. The Amnesty International delegation went to Kadji on the 26 May 2013 and was able to meet with the inhabitants of the Dar-Es-Salam neighborhood whose testimonies highlighted that the Malian forces apparently tortured or otherwise ill-treated several individuals during the raid on the village. The most serious violations occurred on the 1 March 2013 when the Malian army arrested more than 50 people who had their hands tied behind their back and were beaten or tortured in front of their wives and children. One of the detainees who was later released without charge or trial, told Amnesty International: “We were held one by one in the air by two soldiers, whilst a third poured water into our mouths, nostrils and ears, we were asked to confess that we were MUJAO members.” The following day, on the 2 March 2013, three other villagers were tied up and taken to the river. These people who were subsequently released without charge told Amnesty International: “We were thrown into the water. Two soldiers trampled on us while we were in the water.”" ^[+]