PreparationThe army began arming civilians with weapons such as machetes from 1990, and training the Hutu youth in combat, officially as a programme of "civil defence" to the RPF threat, but these weapons were later used in carrying out the genocide. Rwanda also purchased large numbers of grenades.
The Rwandan Armed Forces (FAR) expanded rapidly at this time, growing from less than 10,000 troops to almost 30,000 in one year.The new recruits were often poorly disciplined.
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In March 1993, the Hutu Power began compiling lists of "traitors" whom they planned to kill.In October 1993, the President of Burundi, was assassinated by extremist Tutsi army officers.The assassination caused shockwaves, reinforcing the notion among Hutus that the Tutsi were their enemy and could not be trusted.The idea of a "final solution," which had first been suggested in 1992 was now top of their agenda, and they began actively planning it.They were confident of persuading the Hutu population to carry out killings.
On January 11, 1994, commander of UNAMIR, sent his "Genocide Fax" to UN Headquarters.The UNAMIR force was established by Resolution 872 on October 5, 1993 with the consent of both parties to the civil war |