Knowra Rwandan Civil War Rwandan Civil War The Rwandan Civil War was a conflict between Rwanda’s government and the Rwandan Patriotic Front that began in 1990 and ended with the RPF’s victory in 1994.
Rwandan Patriotic Front : A political and military movement led by Tutsi exiles that fought to overthrow Rwanda’s government and later governed Rwanda. Its 1990 invasion began the war, and its 1994 victory ended it.
Rwandan Revolution : The political upheaval of 1959–1961 that ended the monarchy and brought a Hutu-led republic to power in Rwanda. Its upheaval drove many Tutsi into exile, shaping the RPF’s emergence decades later.
Paul Kagame : A Rwandan military and political leader who commanded the RPF during its 1994 victory and later became president. He led the RPF’s wartime forces after its original commander, Fred Rwigyema, died.
Rwandan Civil War aftermath : The political, social, and regional developments following the RPF’s victory in Rwanda in 1994. The war’s end began a new government and a refugee crisis that destabilized neighboring states.
Rwandan Armed Forces : The state military of Rwanda during the civil war and the 1994 genocide. Its fighting against the RPF sustained the government’s side of the conflict.
Rwandan refugees : People displaced from Rwanda, especially Tutsi who fled violence and political exclusion after 1959. Exile communities in Uganda supplied many early RPF members and leaders.
Juvénal Habyarimana : Rwanda’s president from 1973 until his death in 1994, whose government fought the RPF and negotiated the Arusha Accords. His death in a plane crash triggered the genocide and renewed military fighting.
Rwandan refugees in Zaire : Hundreds of thousands of Rwandans who fled to Zaire in 1994, including civilians and members of the former regime’s forces. Their displacement and the presence of armed groups helped precipitate wars in the Great Lakes region.
Arusha Accords : A 1993 peace agreement intended to share power between Rwanda’s government and the RPF. Their stalled implementation left the war unresolved when President Habyarimana’s plane was shot down.
Tutsi refugees in Uganda : Rwandan Tutsi displaced to Uganda, where many grew up and some joined the RPF. Their demands for return and political inclusion fed the movement that launched the war.
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