The only traces of thousands of Angolan Christian sect members who were camped in the hills around Mount Sumi are burned-out vehicles, shacks pocked with bullet holes and bloodstains in the soil.
The details of a police raid on April 16 in the remote hills of central Huambo province have been fiercely contested, sharpening the divide between the ruling MPLA and the main opposition party UNITA, which fought on opposing sides in a 27-year civil war that ended in 2002.
It has also raised awkward questions about the government in Africa's second-largest oil producer, which spent $6.5 billion on defense in 2013 — the biggest slice of its budget and more than any other country in sub-Saharan Africa.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.