July 17, 1994 -July 17, 2024 exactly 30 years ago. The city of Goma in the Republic of Zaire invaded by nearly a million Rwandan refugees in 1day.

HAKIZIMANA Maurice

July 17, 1994 -July 17, 2024 exactly 30 years ago. The city of Goma in the Republic of Zaire invaded by nearly a million Rwandan refugees (between 500,000 and 800,000) in 1day. This July 17, 1994, the final of the 1994 World Cup was played in the United States. The time differences between the USA and Zaire explain why some matches were followed, in Zaire, around 3 a.m., 4 a.m. or even 5 a.m. That day, while several people were glued to their TVs watching the World Cup final, Goma experienced one of its worst disasters. Between 500,000 and 800,000 people (estimates by Médecins sans frontières MSF) crossed the Zaire border and entered the city of Goma.

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As a reminder, the war that the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF-Inkotanyi) was waging against the Rwandan Armed Forces (FAR-Inzirabwoba) and the “Interahamwe/Impuzamugambi” militiamen had reached a turning point on 14 July 1994, when the RPF-Inkotanyi seized the Ruhengeri Prefecture. The Rwandan Armed Forces (FAR-Inzirabwoba) and the militiamen had no choice but to retreat to Gisenyi, a prefecture bordering the city of Goma, in Zaire. But their resistance was short-lived, because 3 days later (July 17), the city of Gisenyi had also fallen under the control of the Inkotanyi!

It was at the frightening rate of about 25,000 people every hour that 500,000 to 800,000 Rwandan refugees crossed the border from Gisenyi (in Rwanda) to Goma (Zaire), a record never before recorded by the UNHCR, which had previously only anticipated a probable influx of 50,000 refugees and which thus found itself overwhelmed.

At that time, Goma was only a small town of 300,000 inhabitants, but in one day, tens of thousands of people, soldiers on trucks, wealthy people in their cars, others on bicycles, on foot, invaded the city, fleeing the advance of the RPF-Inkotanyi troops who were dangerously approaching the center of Gisenyi.During this day of July 17, 1994, some 10,000 Inzirabwobas soldiers mixed with refugees, also crossed the Zairian border.Initially, most of them were disarmed by the Zairian military at the 2 border posts of Goma (La Corniche and Birere).

In the afternoon, however, when General Augustin Bizimungu (Chief of Staff of the Rwandan Armed Forces) decided to capitulate and flee as well, entire columns of the Rwandan Armed Forces (FAR) entered Zaire territory with weapons, vehicles, towed guns, light machine guns, etc. Others among these soldiers and militiamen left with their weapons for the refugee camps set up on the outskirts of Goma (Mugunga and Lac Vert).

The very next day (July 18, 1994), the Rwandan Patriotic Front declared a unilateral ceasefire, thus putting a definitive end to the Rwandan civil war that began four years earlier on October 1, 1990 and relaunched the day after the assassination of President Juvénal Habyarimana on April 6, 1994!

This world,

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Credits : Benjamin Babunga

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