But over the years, the animals fell prey to land mines, ivory-stalking poachers and hungry locals. Many animals were slaughtered by the country's military which used low-flying helicopters to take pot shots at big game. Still raging, the war has cost the lives of more than a million people and driven more than 2.5 million civilians from their homes. A 1997 survey by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature estimated fewer than 300 elephants remained in all of Angola. Angola's Forest Development Institute said heavily armed Angolan and foreign poachers had killed them.
Poachers use rifles, land mines or poisoned water sources to get their game.
But this project could prove to be a turning point for the country's wildlife. To oversee the project, they set up a nonprofit organization, called the Kissama Foundation, using the park's English-language name, and headed by Angola's armed forces chief Gen. Joao de Matos. Another 300 elephants from Botswana are expected to join them over the next year. The park lies in an area traditionally held by the army and is heavily protected. The foundation is also seeking to boost tourism in a country of astounding natural beauty, but mostly avoided by tourists because of the fighting.