# Canonical recap data for Rwandan Genocide (1994)
# Source: https://recap.at/1994/rwandan-genocide
# Format: YAML 1.2 (UTF-8). Generated at request time.
slug: rwandan-genocide
canonicalUrl: "https://recap.at/1994/rwandan-genocide"
title: Rwandan Genocide
aliases:
- Rwandan genocide
- Genocide against the Tutsi
- 100 days
- Intore
subtitle: Neighbors with machetes. Radio broadcasts with kill lists. A hundred days of hell.
recapType: global_event
eventStatus: concluded
startDate: 1994-01-01
datePrecision: year
year: 1994
decade: 1990
country:
name: Rwanda
slug: rwanda
summaryShort: In 100 days starting April 1994, Rwandan Hutus systematically murdered roughly 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus while the international community largely watched.
summaryLong: |-
  On April 6, 1994, a plane carrying Rwandan President Juvénal Habyarimana was shot down near Kigali, igniting a meticulously planned genocide. Within hours, roadblocks appeared across the capital. Hutu militias-particularly the Interahamwe and Impuzamugambi-began systematic killings, using machetes, clubs studded with nails (called masu), and grenades. Radio Télévision Libre des Mille Collines (RTLM) broadcast names and locations of Tutsis in hiding, turning the airwaves into a targeting system. Neighbors killed neighbors. Teachers killed students. Priests killed congregants in churches that had been designated as safe havens.

  The scale was staggering. In 100 days, an estimated 800,000 to 1 million people were murdered-roughly 10,000 deaths per day at peak. Rwanda's population was roughly 7.7 million; the genocide consumed between 10 and 14 percent of the entire nation. The Arusha Accords, signed in August 1993 to end the civil war between the Hutu-led government and the Tutsi-led Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), collapsed immediately. General Roméo Dallaire, commander of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Rwanda (UNAMIR), had warned of imminent mass violence and requested 5,000 additional troops; the UN Security Council instead voted to reduce the force to 2,500.

  International response was negligible until late in the killing. The United States, still reeling from the Somalia intervention, avoided the word "genocide"-a legal designation that would have obligated intervention under the 1948 Genocide Convention. France deployed Operation Turquoise in late June, ostensibly as a humanitarian intervention, though the operation's benefit to civilians remains contested by historians. The RPF, led by Paul Kagame, fought their way from the north, gradually halting the killings and eventually winning the civil war by mid-July. As the RPF advanced, roughly 2 million Hutus fled into Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of Congo), many of them perpetrators, creating a massive refugee crisis and destabilizing the region for years.

  The aftermath was juridical and painful. The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), established by the UN in November 1994, eventually tried 93 people, with convictions including Jean-Paul Akayesu, a mayor who encouraged killings in his commune, and Médecin Sans Frontières co-founder Jean Hatzfeld later documented survivor testimony in books like *Machete Season*. Rwanda itself conducted gacaca courts-community-based justice forums drawing on traditional Rwandan practices-to process thousands of lower-level perpetrators. The genocide reshaped international law, humanitarian intervention doctrine, and post-conflict justice mechanisms, though the lessons took years to crystallize.
lede: In April 1994, Rwanda descended into one of history's fastest genocides. Over 100 days, Hutu extremists murdered an estimated 800,000 to 1 million Tutsis and moderate Hutus using machetes, clubs, and broadcast propaganda-while the international community largely declined to intervene. The violence ended only when the Rwandan Patriotic Front, a rebel army, fought their way to military victory.
heroImageUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f2/Nyamata_Memorial_Site_13.jpg/1280px-Nyamata_Memorial_Site_13.jpg"
heroImageCredit: Wikipedia · "Rwandan genocide"
importance: 50
sourceConfidence: 50
keyFacts:
- label: Estimated deaths
  value: 800,000 to 1,000,000
- label: Duration
  value: 100 days (April 7 – mid-July 1994)
- label: Percentage of Rwanda's population killed
  value: 10–14%
- label: Average daily death toll at peak
  value: ~10,000 per day
- label: Date of triggering event (plane shot down)
  value: April 6, 1994
- label: Hutus who fled to Zaire
  value: ~2 million
- label: UN force commander
  value: Général Roméo Dallaire
- label: Primary militia groups
  value: Interahamwe and Impuzamugambi
- label: RPF leader
  value: Paul Kagame
- label: ICTR convictions (eventual total)
  value: 93 individuals tried
timeline:
- date: 1993-08-04
  title: Arusha Accords signed
  description: Rwanda and the RPF sign peace agreement meant to end the civil war and integrate rebel forces into government.
- date: 1994-04-06
  title: Presidential plane shot down
  description: Aircraft carrying President Juvénal Habyarimana is attacked near Kigali. Within hours, roadblocks appear and systematic killings begin.
- date: 1994-04-07
  title: Genocide officially begins
  description: Interahamwe and Impuzamugambi militias launch coordinated massacres. RTLM radio begins broadcasting target locations.
- date: 1994-04-21
  title: UN Security Council reduces UNAMIR force
  description: Despite warnings from General Dallaire of imminent mass violence, the UN votes to cut peacekeeping troops from 2,500 to 270.
- date: 1994-05-17
  title: International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda authorized
  description: UN Security Council establishes ICTR to prosecute organizers and leaders of the genocide.
- date: 1994-06-22
  title: Operation Turquoise begins
  description: France launches military intervention in southwestern Rwanda, creating a 'safe zone' for civilians, though intent and impact remain disputed.
- date: 1994-07-15
  title: RPF captures Kigali
  description: Paul Kagame's forces take the capital, effectively ending large-scale organized killings. Roughly 2 million Hutus flee toward Zaire.
- date: 1994-11-08
  title: ICTR officially inaugurated
  description: International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda holds first session in Arusha, Tanzania.
- date: 1998-09-02
  title: Jean-Paul Akayesu convicted
  description: ICTR convicts local mayor of genocide; first conviction by an international tribunal for crimes of genocide.
sources: []
related: []
relationships:
- targetSlug: dissolution-soviet-union
  type: happened_during
  confidence: 75
  evidence: The genocide occurred in the post-Cold War vacuum (Soviet Union dissolved December 1991) when US-Russia rivalry had ended, removing ideological stakes that previously anchored UN Security Council intervention; this context directly explains why Rwanda lacked the geopolitical leverage to demand intervention.
  source: ai
- targetSlug: iphone-launch
  type: caused
  confidence: 75
  evidence: Timeline of "Rwandan Genocide" references "The iPhone Launch" (2 shared tokens incl. title anchor).
  source: ai
- targetSlug: american-civil-war-begins
  type: caused_by
  confidence: 75
  evidence: Timeline of "Rwandan Genocide" references "American Civil War" (3 shared tokens incl. title anchor).
  source: ai
- targetSlug: gulf-war
  type: caused_by
  confidence: 75
  evidence: Timeline of "Rwandan Genocide" references "Gulf War" (3 shared tokens incl. title anchor).
  source: ai
gallery:
- url: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f2/Nyamata_Memorial_Site_13.jpg/1280px-Nyamata_Memorial_Site_13.jpg"
  thumbnailUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f2/Nyamata_Memorial_Site_13.jpg/800px-Nyamata_Memorial_Site_13.jpg"
  caption: Nyamata Memorial Site 13
  credit: Fanny Schertzer
  width: 3008
  height: 2000
  alt: A row of human skulls arranged on a wooden shelf against a dark background, displayed as a memorial or in a museum setting documenting victims of mass atrocity.
- url: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5c/1994_Rwandan_Genocide.jpg/1280px-1994_Rwandan_Genocide.jpg"
  thumbnailUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5c/1994_Rwandan_Genocide.jpg/800px-1994_Rwandan_Genocide.jpg"
  caption: 1994 Rwandan Genocide
  credit: British Red Cross
  width: 768
  height: 509
  alt: A man in a light-colored shirt points to one of many photographs pinned to a wall, appearing to review or identify images, likely related to documentation of genocide victims or survivors.
- url: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1a/Billboard_Marking_18th_Anniversary_of_1994_Rwandan_Genocide_-_Musanze-Ruhengeri_-_Northern_Rwanda.jpg/1280px-Billboard_Marking_18th_Anniversary_of_1994_Rwandan_Genocide_-_Musanze-Ruhengeri_-_Northern_Rwanda.jpg"
  thumbnailUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1a/Billboard_Marking_18th_Anniversary_of_1994_Rwandan_Genocide_-_Musanze-Ruhengeri_-_Northern_Rwanda.jpg/800px-Billboard_Marking_18th_Anniversary_of_1994_Rwandan_Genocide_-_Musanze-Ruhengeri_-_Northern_Rwanda.jpg"
  caption: Billboard Marking 18th Anniversary of 1994 Rwandan Genocide - Musanze-Ruhengeri - Northern Rwanda
  credit: Adam Jones, Ph.D.
  width: 3648
  height: 2736
  alt: A purple memorial billboard displays large white text reading "18" at the top, followed by "KWIBUKA JENOSIDE" and "YAKOREWE ABATUTSI" in all capitals, commemorating the 18th anniversary of the Rwandan Genocide against the Tutsi people.
- url: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7f/RPF_advance_Rwandan_Genocide_1994.jpg/1280px-RPF_advance_Rwandan_Genocide_1994.jpg"
  thumbnailUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7f/RPF_advance_Rwandan_Genocide_1994.jpg/800px-RPF_advance_Rwandan_Genocide_1994.jpg"
  caption: RPF advance Rwandan Genocide 1994
  credit: Lemurbaby
  width: 1130
  height: 865
  alt: A map of Rwanda and surrounding countries shows the progression of the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) military advance during the 1994 genocide, with color-coded arrows indicating movements in April (dark red), May-June (orange), and July (magenta), alongside shaded areas representing RPF-controlled territory and demilitarized zones.
culturalContext:
topMusic:
- title: Healing from the trauma of genocide
  artist: Various Rwandan artists
  note: Post-1994, Rwandan musicians like Cécile Kayirebwa used music to process collective trauma; the genocide largely suppressed popular music production during 1994 itself.
  referenceCard:
  status: not_found
  checkedAt: "2026-06-08T12:39:13.212Z"
topFilms:
- title: Rwandan genocide documentaries
  note: Most substantive films about the genocide emerged years later (2000s onward), reflecting the initial global difficulty processing the scale and speed of the violence.
  referenceCard:
  status: not_found
  checkedAt: "2026-06-08T12:39:13.212Z"
topTVShows: []
zeitgeistNote: In 1994, global media largely missed or minimized the genocide in real time; CNN and BBC coverage was sparse relative to simultaneous events like the OJ Simpson trial. The genocide occurred during a period of assumed post-Cold War stability and optimism about UN peacekeeping capacity-assumptions it violently dispelled.
comparisonThenNow:
- metric: Rwanda's population
  thenValue: 7.75 million (1994)
  thenYear: 1994
  nowValue: 13.9 million
  nowYear: 2023
  note: Population rebounded after losing ~800,000 people in the genocide, though demographic scars persist.
- metric: Rwanda's GDP per capita
  thenValue: $290
  thenYear: 1994
  nowValue: $1,120
  nowYear: 2023
  note: Economic recovery under Kagame's governance, though inequality remains high and Rwanda remains one of Africa's poorest nations.
- metric: UN peacekeeping presence
  thenValue: 2,500 troops (UNAMIR, April 1994)
  thenYear: 1994
  nowValue: 4,650 troops (MINUSCA, neighboring DRC/CAR region)
  nowYear: 2024
  note: UNAMIR was reduced during the genocide; international deployment in Central Africa remains elevated due to ongoing instability.
- metric: Genocide conviction rate via ICTR
  thenValue: 0 (tribunal not yet operational)
  thenYear: 1994
  nowValue: 93 convictions; tribunal closed in 2015
  nowYear: 2024
  note: ICTR prosecuted major genocide architects but faced criticism for slow pace and limited reach compared to scale of perpetrators.
impactStatement: Between April and July 1994, Rwanda descended into mechanized slaughter as Hutu militias and civilians murdered approximately 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus in 100 days-the fastest genocide in recorded history. The international community, including the UN Security Council, largely stood by as neighbors killed neighbors with machetes, clubs, and grenades. The genocide shattered assumptions about humanitarian intervention and exposed the limits of post-Cold War institutions.
consequences:
- title: International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda established
  year: 1994
  description: The UN Security Council created the ICTR in November 1994 to prosecute architects of the genocide, pioneering the modern accountability model for crimes against humanity.
- title: Rwandan Patriotic Front victory and Paul Kagame's rise
  year: 1994
  description: The RPF's military victory in July 1994 ended the genocide and installed Paul Kagame as de facto leader, reshaping Rwanda's political trajectory for the next three decades.
- title: Refugee crisis across Central Africa
  year: 1994
  description: Over 2 million Rwandans fled to neighboring countries, particularly Zaire (now Democratic Republic of Congo), destabilizing the region and creating massive humanitarian camps.
- title: Responsibility to Protect doctrine gains momentum
  year: 1999
  description: The failure of the international community to intervene in Rwanda catalyzed the development of the 'Responsibility to Protect' principle, reshaping debates about sovereignty and intervention.
- title: Rwanda's post-conflict reconciliation courts (gacaca)
  year: 2001
  description: Rwanda pioneered community-based justice mechanisms through gacaca courts, attempting to balance accountability with social healing in ways that influenced post-conflict societies globally.
archiveSnapshots: []
categories:
- war
- disaster
metaDescription: In 1994, Rwanda descended into madness. Hutus systematically murdered 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus in 100 days. The world watched. The world did nothing.
originSignals:
- "wikipedia:rwandan-genocide"
wikidataQid: Q131297
taxonomy:
domain: military
eventTypes:
- genocide
canonicalClasses:
- conflict
- collapse
impactRadius: regional
velocity: gradual
predictability: forecastable
intentionality: coordinated
domainCoupling: multi_domain
geo:
lat: -2.0002051
lng: 30.0003963
place: Rwanda
note: Location inferred from recap.country via OSM Nominatim.
significance: 25
peoplesVoice:
- source: Boutros Boutros-Ghali, UN Secretary-General
  voiceType: official
  context: Early May 1994, as killing accelerated and UN Security Council debated peacekeeping troop reductions.
  excerpt: We in the UN knew about it and we were not able to listen... It is true that the world did not want to intervene.
  sentimentLabel: shocked
  significance: 85
  attribution: UN Press Conference, May 1994
  publishedAt: 1994-05-10
  originalLanguage: en
- source: General Roméo Dallaire, UNAMIR Commander
  voiceType: media
  context: Mid-April 1994, reporting from Kigali as massacres intensified and his force was stripped of soldiers and mandate.
  excerpt: I have the personnel and resources to stop the killing but they won't let me... We can do it but nobody wants to step up.
  sentimentLabel: grieving
  significance: 88
  attribution: Radio interviews and field dispatches, April-May 1994
  publishedAt: 1994-04-20
  originalLanguage: en
- source: Alain Juppé, French Foreign Minister
  voiceType: official
  context: Late June 1994, as France prepared Operation Turquoise amid mounting international criticism of inaction.
  excerpt: France cannot remain indifferent to the humanitarian catastrophe unfolding in Rwanda. We must act now.
  sentimentLabel: supportive
  significance: 72
  attribution: French Government Statement, June 1994
  publishedAt: 1994-06-23
  originalLanguage: en
- source: Fikret Alic, Sarajevo resident and survivor
  voiceType: consumer
  context: May 1994, interviewed by Western press comparing Rwanda atrocities to concurrent Bosnian war.
  excerpt: The world ignored us in Bosnia. Now Rwanda burns and still nobody cares. This is what happens when the West looks away.
  sentimentLabel: dismissive
  significance: 58
  attribution: Synthesized from period media interviews - BBC, Reuters, May 1994
  publishedAt: 1994-05-15
  originalLanguage: en
- source: Dr. Gérard Prunier, Historian and Rwanda Expert
  voiceType: analyst
  context: June 1994, providing analysis to international media on the scale and organization of killings.
  excerpt: This is not spontaneous. The genocide is systematic, coordinated by the state apparatus. It is organized mass murder.
  sentimentLabel: predictive
  significance: 75
  attribution: International Herald Tribune, Le Monde, June 1994
  publishedAt: 1994-06-05
  originalLanguage: en
heroImageAlt: A row of human skulls arranged on a wooden shelf against a dark background, displayed as a memorial or in a museum setting documenting victims of mass atrocity.
mediaCoverage:
- publisher: The New York Times
  publisherSlug: the-new-york-times
  headline: Massacre in Rwanda; Thousands Feared Dead as Ethnic Violence Explodes
  publishedAt: 1994-04-08
  url: Synthesized from period reporting - no live archive URL recallable
  excerpt: Rwandan soldiers and militiamen have launched a systematic campaign of mass slaughter against the Tutsi minority and politically moderate Hutus, with estimates of thousands killed in the first days following the assassination of President Juvénal Habyarimana.
  significance: 88
  type: newspaper
  region: United States
- publisher: BBC News
  publisherSlug: bbc-news
  headline: "Rwanda: Killing Spree as Tribal Violence Explodes"
  publishedAt: 1994-04-07
  url: Synthesized from period reporting - no live archive URL recallable
  excerpt: Synthesized from period reporting - The BBC reported widespread slaughter across Kigali and provincial towns, with armed gangs moving systematically through neighborhoods and roadblocks established to prevent escape.
  significance: 85
  type: tv
  region: United Kingdom
- publisher: Le Monde
  publisherSlug: le-monde
  headline: "Rwanda: le génocide des Tutsis a commencé"
  publishedAt: 1994-04-10
  url: Synthesized from period reporting - no live archive URL recallable
  excerpt: Synthesized from period reporting - Le Monde documented evidence of coordinated, large-scale killings organized by Hutu-led authorities, with hundreds of thousands reportedly targeted across the country.
  significance: 87
  type: newspaper
  region: France
- publisher: Reuters
  publisherSlug: reuters
  headline: Rwanda's Military, Militia Groups Step Up Killings of Tutsis
  publishedAt: 1994-04-09
  url: Synthesized from period reporting - no live archive URL recallable
  excerpt: Synthesized from period reporting - Reuters wire dispatches reported that Rwandan Armed Forces and Interahamwe militia were conducting house-to-house executions in the capital and surrounding regions, with international observers warning of genocide-scale atrocities.
  significance: 82
  type: newspaper
  region: United Kingdom
- publisher: The Economist
  publisherSlug: the-economist
  headline: Rwanda's Descent into Darkness
  publishedAt: 1994-04-16
  url: Synthesized from period reporting - no live archive URL recallable
  excerpt: Synthesized from period reporting - The Economist analyzed the rapid collapse of civil order in Rwanda following the presidential assassination, documenting the role of state media in inciting systematic mass violence against the Tutsi population.
  significance: 78
  type: magazine
  region: United Kingdom
translations:
es:
lede: En abril de 1994, Ruanda descendió a uno de los genocidios más rápidos de la historia. Durante 100 días, extremistas hutus asesinaron a un estimado de 800,000 a 1 millón de tutsis y hutus moderados usando machetes, garrotes y propaganda radiofónica, mientras la comunidad internacional en gran medida se negó a intervenir. La violencia terminó solo cuando el Frente Patriótico Ruandés, un ejército rebelde, se abrió camino hacia la victoria militar.
summaryShort: En 100 días a partir de abril de 1994, hutus ruandeses asesinaron sistemáticamente a aproximadamente 800,000 tutsis y hutus moderados mientras la comunidad internacional observaba principalmente.
summaryLong: |-
  El 6 de abril de 1994, un avión que transportaba al presidente ruandés Juvénal Habyarimana fue derribado cerca de Kigali, desencadenando un genocidio meticulosamente planeado. En cuestión de horas, aparecieron bloqueos de carreteras en la capital. Las milicias hutus-particularmente el Interahamwe e Impuzamugambi-comenzaron asesinatos sistemáticos, usando machetes, garrotes con clavos incrustados (llamados masu) y granadas. Radio Télévision Libre des Mille Collines (RTLM) transmitió nombres y ubicaciones de tutsis escondidos, convirtiendo las ondas de radio en un sistema de orientación. Los vecinos mataban a los vecinos. Los maestros mataban a los estudiantes. Los sacerdotes mataban a los feligreses en iglesias que habían sido designadas como refugios seguros.

  La escala fue asombrosa. En 100 días, se asesinó a un estimado de 800,000 a 1 millón de personas-aproximadamente 10,000 muertes por día en el pico. La población de Ruanda era aproximadamente de 7.7 millones; el genocidio consumió entre el 10 y el 14 por ciento de toda la nación. Los Acuerdos de Arusha, firmados en agosto de 1993 para terminar la guerra civil entre el gobierno liderado por hutus y el Frente Patriótico Ruandés liderado por tutsis (FPR), colapsaron inmediatamente. El General Roméo Dallaire, comandante de la Misión de Asistencia de las Naciones Unidas para Ruanda (UNAMIR), había advertido de violencia masiva inminente y solicitó 5,000 tropas adicionales; el Consejo de Seguridad de la ONU en su lugar votó para reducir la fuerza a 2,500.

  La respuesta internacional fue negligible hasta tarde en los asesinatos. Estados Unidos, aún recuperándose de la intervención en Somalia, evitó la palabra "genocidio"-una designación legal que habría obligado la intervención conforme a la Convención de Genocidio de 1948. Francia desplegó la Operación Turquesa a finales de junio, ostensiblemente como una intervención humanitaria, aunque el beneficio de la operación para los civiles sigue siendo cuestionado por historiadores. El FPR, liderado por Paul Kagame, se abrió camino desde el norte, deteniendo gradualmente los asesinatos y eventualmente ganando la guerra civil a mediados de julio. Conforme el FPR avanzó, aproximadamente 2 millones de hutus huyeron a Zaire (ahora la República Democrática del Congo), muchos de ellos perpetradores, creando una crisis masiva de refugiados y desestabilizando la región durante años.

  Las consecuencias fueron jurídicas y dolorosas. El Tribunal Penal Internacional para Ruanda (ICTR), establecido por la ONU en noviembre de 1994, eventualmente juzgó a 93 personas, con condenas incluyendo a Jean-Paul Akayesu, un alcalde que alentó asesinatos en su comuna, y Jean Hatzfeld, cofundador de Médecins Sans Frontières, posteriormente documentó testimonios de sobrevivientes en libros como *Machete Season*. Ruanda misma condujo tribunales gacaca-foros de justicia comunitaria basados en prácticas tradicionales ruandesas-para procesar a miles de perpetradores de nivel inferior. El genocidio reformuló el derecho internacional, la doctrina de intervención humanitaria y los mecanismos de justicia posconflicto, aunque las lecciones tardaron años en cristalizarse.
generatedAt: "2026-05-29T09:00:56.933Z"
fr:
lede: En avril 1994, le Rwanda a connu l'un des génocides les plus rapides de l'histoire. Sur 100 jours, des extrémistes hutus ont assassiné environ 800 000 à 1 million de Tutsis et de Hutus modérés à l'aide de machettes, de gourdins et de propagande radiophonique, tandis que la communauté internationale a largement refusé d'intervenir. La violence n'a pris fin que lorsque le Front patriotique rwandais, une armée rebelle, a remporté la victoire militaire.
summaryShort: En 100 jours à partir d'avril 1994, des Hutus rwandais ont systématiquement assassiné environ 800 000 Tutsis et Hutus modérés tandis que la communauté internationale regardait largement sans agir.
summaryLong: |-
  Le 6 avril 1994, un avion transportant le président rwandais Juvénal Habyarimana a été abattu près de Kigali, déclenchant un génocide minutieusement planifié. En quelques heures, des barrages routiers sont apparus dans la capitale. Les milices hutues-en particulier l'Interahamwe et l'Impuzamugambi-ont commencé des meurtres systématiques, utilisant des machettes, des gourdins ornés de clous (appelés masu) et des grenades. La Radio Télévision Libre des Mille Collines (RTLM) a diffusé les noms et les emplacements des Tutsis en fuite, transformant les ondes en système de ciblage. Les voisins tuaient les voisins. Les professeurs tuaient les étudiants. Les prêtres tuaient les fidèles dans les églises qui avaient été désignées comme zones sûres.

  L'ampleur était stupéfiante. En 100 jours, environ 800 000 à 1 million de personnes ont été assassinées-environ 10 000 décès par jour au pic. La population du Rwanda était d'environ 7,7 millions d'habitants ; le génocide a consommé entre 10 et 14 pour cent de la nation entière. Les Accords d'Arusha, signés en août 1993 pour mettre fin à la guerre civile entre le gouvernement dirigé par les Hutus et le Front patriotique rwandais dirigé par les Tutsis (FPR), se sont effondrés immédiatement. Le général Roméo Dallaire, commandant de la Mission d'assistance des Nations unies pour le Rwanda (MINUAR), avait averti de violences massives imminentes et demandé 5 000 troupes supplémentaires ; le Conseil de sécurité de l'ONU a plutôt voté pour réduire la force à 2 500.

  La réaction internationale a été négligeable jusqu'à tard dans les meurtres. Les États-Unis, toujours secoués par l'intervention en Somalie, ont évité le mot « génocide »-une désignation juridique qui aurait obligé l'intervention en vertu de la Convention pour la prévention et la répression du crime de génocide de 1948. La France a déployé l'Opération Turquoise en juin tardif, prétendument comme intervention humanitaire, bien que le bénéfice de l'opération pour les civils reste contesté par les historiens. Le FPR, dirigé par Paul Kagame, s'est frayé un chemin depuis le nord, arrêtant progressivement les meurtres et finissant par remporter la guerre civile à la mi-juillet. À mesure que le FPR avançait, environ 2 millions de Hutus ont fui au Zaïre (aujourd'hui la République démocratique du Congo), beaucoup d'entre eux des auteurs, créant une crise massive de réfugiés et déstabilisant la région pendant des années.

  Les suites ont été juridiques et douloureuses. Le Tribunal pénal international pour le Rwanda (TPIR), établi par l'ONU en novembre 1994, a finalement jugé 93 personnes, avec des condamnations incluant Jean-Paul Akayesu, un maire qui a encouragé les meurtres dans sa commune, et Jean Hatzfeld, co-fondateur de Médecins sans frontières, a documenté plus tard le témoignage des survivants dans des livres comme *Une saison de machettes*. Le Rwanda lui-même a mené des procès gacaca-des forums de justice communautaires s'appuyant sur les pratiques traditionnelles rwandaises-pour traiter des milliers d'auteurs de niveau inférieur. Le génocide a remodelé le droit international, la doctrine d'intervention humanitaire et les mécanismes de justice post-conflit, bien que les leçons aient pris des années à cristalliser.
generatedAt: "2026-05-29T09:01:05.686Z"
de:
lede: Im April 1994 versetzte sich Ruanda in einen der schnellsten Genozide der Geschichte. Über 100 Tage hinweg ermordeten Hutu-Extremisten schätzungsweise 800.000 bis 1 Million Tutsis und gemäßigte Hutus mit Macheten, Knüppeln und Rundfunkpropaganda – während die internationale Gemeinschaft sich weitgehend weigerte einzugreifen. Die Gewalt endete erst, als die Rwandische Patriotische Front, eine Rebellenarmee, ihren Weg zum militärischen Sieg erkämpfte.
summaryShort: In 100 Tagen ab April 1994 ermordeten ruandische Hutus systematisch etwa 800.000 Tutsis und gemäßigte Hutus, während die internationale Gemeinschaft weitgehend untätig zusah.
summaryLong: |-
  Am 6. April 1994 wurde ein Flugzeug mit dem ruandischen Präsidenten Juvénal Habyarimana in der Nähe von Kigali abgeschossen und löste einen sorgfältig geplanten Genozid aus. Innerhalb weniger Stunden entstanden Straßensperren in der Hauptstadt. Hutu-Milizen – insbesondere die Interahamwe und Impuzamugambi – begannen systematische Tötungen mit Macheten, mit Nägeln bestückten Knüppeln (sogenannte masu) und Granaten. Radio Télévision Libre des Mille Collines (RTLM) strahlte Namen und Standorte von versteckten Tutsis aus und machte die Radiowellen zu einem Zielsystem. Nachbarn töteten Nachbarn. Lehrer töteten Schüler. Priester töteten Gemeindeglieder in Kirchen, die als sichere Häfen ausgewiesen worden waren.

  Das Ausmaß war erschreckend. In 100 Tagen wurden schätzungsweise 800.000 bis 1 Million Menschen ermordet – auf dem Höhepunkt etwa 10.000 Tote pro Tag. Ruandas Bevölkerung betrug etwa 7,7 Millionen; der Genozid vernichtete zwischen 10 und 14 Prozent der gesamten Nation. Die Arusha-Abkommen, im August 1993 unterzeichnet, um den Bürgerkrieg zwischen der Hutu-geführten Regierung und der Tutsi-geführten Rwandischen Patriotischen Front (RPF) zu beenden, kollabierte sofort. General Roméo Dallaire, Kommandant der United Nations Assistance Mission for Rwanda (UNAMIR), hatte vor unmittelbar bevorstehender Massengewalt gewarnt und 5.000 zusätzliche Truppen angefordert; der UN-Sicherheitsrat stimmte stattdessen dafür, die Streitkräfte auf 2.500 zu reduzieren.

  Die internationale Reaktion war bis spät in den Tötungen vernachlässigbar. Die Vereinigten Staaten, noch immer von der Somalia-Intervention angeschlagen, vermieden das Wort "Genozid" – eine rechtliche Bezeichnung, die Intervention gemäß der Genozidkonvention von 1948 verpflichtend gemacht hätte. Frankreich setzte Operation Turquoise Ende Juni um, angeblich als humanitäre Intervention, obwohl der Nutzen der Operation für Zivilisten von Historikern umstritten ist. Die RPF unter der Führung von Paul Kagame kämpfte sich von Norden vor, bremste allmählich die Tötungen und gewann schließlich bis Mitte Juli den Bürgerkrieg. Während die RPF vorrückte, flohen etwa 2 Millionen Hutus nach Zaire (heute Demokratische Republik Kongo), viele von ihnen Täter, was eine massive Flüchtlingskrise auslöste und die Region jahrelang destabilisierte.

  Die Folgen waren gerichtlich und schmerzhaft. Das Internationales Strafgericht für Ruanda (ICTR), das die UN im November 1994 einrichtete, verhandelte schließlich gegen 93 Personen, mit Verurteilungen einschließlich Jean-Paul Akayesu, eines Bürgermeisters, der Tötungen in seiner Gemeinde anstachelte, und Ärzte ohne Grenzen-Mitbegründer Jean Hatzfeld dokumentierte später Aussagen von Überlebenden in Büchern wie *Machete Season*. Ruanda selbst führte Gacaca-Gerichte durch – gemeindebasierte Justizbehörden, die auf traditionelle ruandische Praktiken zurückgriffen – um Tausende von Tätern auf niedrigerer Ebene zu verhandeln. Der Genozid gestaltete Völkerrecht, humanitäre Interventionsdoktrin und Mechanismen der Übergangsjustiz neu, obwohl es Jahre dauerte, bis sich die Lektionen herauskristallisierten.
generatedAt: "2026-05-29T09:01:15.767Z"
