formation. Spendius, despite his caution prior to Naravas' defection, joined the two remaining rebel forces together and moved down into the valley. The historian Dexter Hoyos believes the rebels would have been better served if their two forces had attacked separately but simultaneously, forcing the Carthaginians to fight in two different directions. He ascribes their actual tactics to Spendius not trusting the inexperienced Libyans to manoeuvre independently. After a hotly contested battle, regarding which few details survive, the role of the Carthaginian elephants and the Numidian cavalry proved decisive and the rebels were defeated. They took heavy losses, but their survivors retreated from the field in good order. Rebel casualties were given by Polybius as 10,000 killed and 4,000 captured. Hoyos suggests this may be an exaggeration, but comments that it is not impossible. Spendius and Autaritus escaped the battle and made for Hippo. Carthaginian losses are not known. Since leaving Carthage, Hamilcar had treated rebels he had captured well and offered them a choice of joining his army or free passage home. He made the same offer to the 4,000 captives from the recent battle. Spendius perceived this generous treatment as the motivation behind Naravas's defection and feared the disintegration of his army; he was aware such generous terms would not be extended to the rebel leaders. Encouraged by his senior subordinates, notably Autaritus, to remove the possibility of any goodwill between the sides, he had 700 Carthaginian prisoners, including Gisco, tortured to death: they had their hands cut off, were castrated, their legs were broken, they were thrown into a pit and then buried alive. The Carthaginians, in turn, killed their prisoners. From this point, neither side showed any mercy, and the unusual ferocity of the fighting caused Polybius to term it the "Truceless War". Any further prisoners taken by the Carthaginians were trampled to death by elephants. Aftermath At some point between March and September 239 BC the previously loyal cities of Utica and Hippo slew their Carthaginian garrisons and joined the rebels. Mathos and the rebels previously operating in the area moved south and blockaded Carthage from Tunis. While Mathos maintained the blockade, Spendius led 40,000 men against Hamilcar. After a period of campaigning, the details of which are not clear in the sources, the Carthaginians pinned the rebels in a pass or against a mountain range known as the Saw. Trapped in the mountains and