KINSHASA, Democratic Republic of Congo — The bodies were still smoking Tuesday morning, hours after the sun had risen and the killers had driven off.

They were charred beyond recognition, arms held up in agony, every piece of skin burned away.

“It was the government who did this,” said Félix Tshisekedi, the son of one of Congo’s most popular opposition figures. “I have no doubt.”

Image The headquarters of the Union for Democracy and Social Progress, an opposition party, in Kinshasa, the Democratic Republic of Congo, on Tuesday after it was attacked. Credit... Junior D. Kannah/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

A dirty war is shaping up on the streets of Kinshasa, Congo’s capital. In the past two days, at least 25 people from opposing sides of the political divide have been killed by machetes, gunshots, grenades or fire. The burst of violence has paralyzed one of Africa’s biggest cities and could be a harbinger of more bloodshed to come.