More than 170 Malians have been repatriated from Libya after their hopes of reaching Europe were dashed.
The Malians were imprisoned in Libya, and described jail conditions as harsh.
"I spent one month in jail and there was no food, you would only get some bread in the morning," one of them said.
The 173 looked tired when they got off the plane in Mali's capital, Bamako, after the International Migration Organisation arranged their repatriation.
Two of them had injuries, but it is is unclear how they sustained them.
Government minister Abdourahmane Sylla said the government would give medical and financial assistance to the returnees.
"They will get some money for transport, so that they can go back to their villages. We are also working at helping them with their economic reintegration," he added.
Despite the instability in Libya and European states taking a tougher line against migrants, thousands of sub-Saharan Africans still travel to the North African state in the hope of crossing the Mediterranean.
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