Luanda (AFP) - Angolan generals are dropping their defamation charges against anti-corruption activist Rafael Marques after he vowed not to re-release his book accusing them of corruption and torture, his lawyer said Thursday.

The country's outspoken campaigner has been on trial accused of defaming several generals in a 2011 book on alleged violence and other rights violations linked to Angola's lucrative diamond mining industry.

"The submissions provided by Rafael Marques have led to an agreement between the two parties which paves the way for his discharge and that's what we'll ask at the next hearing Monday," David Mendes, Marques' lawyer, told AFP.

The generals, including one of President Jose Eduardo dos Santos' closest allies, had claimed $1.2 million in damages.

"I will continue to investigate the human rights situation in Lundas and I hope that all the companies will now answer my questions," Marques said.

"The book will not be reissued and it was a voluntary act on my part to open this dialogue."

In his book, which was published in Portugal, Marques accused the generals of orchestrating the torture and killings committed by soldiers and private guards hired to protect diamond concessions in the northeastern Lundas region.

"Company representatives and generals accepted the statements of Rafael Marques and said they did not want to continue the court process," said Fernando Oliveira, the lawyer for ITM Mining, which filed its case along with the generals.

The generals denied all accusations against them and said Marques had given them no chance to respond to the allegations.

Jeffrey Smith, Africa programme officer at the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights group and a friend of Marques, hailed the deal as a victory.

"This is an absolutely stunning turnaround, as many of us were dug in for the long haul," he said.

"He stood face to face with Angola's most powerful and dangerous men."

A deal had been close for weeks, but stalled again when the trial reopened earlier this month.