BRUSSELS, July 31 (UPI) -- Enforced disappearances, torture and extracted confessions are complicating security issues in Mali, reports Amnesty International.
A coup in March toppled the civilian government in Mali. Supporters expressed frustration over the security situation in northern Mali where al-Qaida militants have claimed autonomy. A counter-rebellion in April fueled the crisis further.
Malians interviewed by Amnesty International said soldiers who took part in the counter-coup were abducted and the whereabouts of many remain unknown.
"Enforced disappearances are one of the most serious crimes under international law," the rights group said in its 22-page report.
A police officer who was arrested in May told investigators that torture at the hands of a mobile security group in Mali sometimes lasted for several days.
Malian authorities interviewed by Amnesty International said some of the abuse stemmed for "settling of scores" but pledged that "no guilty person will remain unpunished."
Amnesty International said the security complications in Mali since the beginning of the year have "shaken the very foundations of the state."
Members of the Economic Community of West African States have called for a U.N. resolution that would authorize military intervention to settle the crisis.
