A grenade explosion at a weekend rally for President Jose Eduardo dos Santos didn't cause any injuries - but it blew apart the carnival atmosphere of Angola's first multiparty election campaign.
The incident Saturday demonstrated the fragility of Angola's nascent democracy and showed that the hatreds engendered during the 16-year civil war between UNITA rebels and dos Santos' Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola, or MPLA, have not fully receded despite last May's peace accord.Campaigning ended on Sunday, leaving a "day of reflection" for the 4.5 million voters before two days of balloting start Tuesday. Voters will select a president and 223-member legislature for the former Portuguese colony.
Violence has intensified as the vote approaches, and at least 30 people have been killed since official campaigning started a month ago.
Nobody was hurt by the blast in Benguela, 250 miles south of Luanda, and police said later that the grenade appeared to have been detonated accidentally. But dos Santos' supporters blamed UNITA, now a legal opposition group, and savagely beat three suspected members.
"UNITA must be annihilated," screamed one man who struck one suspect with a heavy stick. Police guarding dos Santos fired above the heads of the crowd to rescue the men from a lynching.
As dos Santos was speaking in Benguela, UNITA leader Jonas Savimbi held a rally in Luanda. One passing MPLA supporter was reported shot dead.
On Friday, a bystander died in a firefight in the capital between police and UNITA youths, who had tried to storm the national radio building.
Supporters of both sides fear violent recriminations after the votes are tallied.