April 24, 1994, marked the 18th day of the Genocide against the Tutsi. By then, the killing had spread across Rwanda, particularly engulfing the southern region. Atrocities were committed throughout the former Gitarama Prefecture—now the districts of Muhanga, Ruhango, and Kamonyi. In Kabgayi, where many Tutsi had sought refuge, the Interahamwe militia stormed schools, churches, and hospitals. Some refugees were slaughtered on-site, while others were taken to the Kabgayi forest and brutally murdered. Women and girls were abducted and subjected to rape, with many never seen again. ALSO READ: April 23, 1994: Lured to safety, slaughtered in cold blood The suffering in Kabgayi extended beyond machetes and bullets. Hundreds died of starvation and illness, worsened by the lack of water. The massacres continued through June, with large-scale killings documented on May 5, May 24, and June 1. Even clergy were not spared. Many were betrayed by their fellow religious leaders. One such priest, Emmanuel Rukundo, played a central role in the killings at Kabgayi. In 2009, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda found him guilty of genocide and, in 2010, sentenced him to 23 years in prison. Across the country, April 24 witnessed intensified massacres. Former President Juvénal Habyarimana’s bodyguards, alongside soldiers and gendarmes, played a leading role in escalating the killings, particularly in the south. In some locations, more than 150,000 Tutsi were killed in a single day. ALSO READ: Genocide Timeline; April 20, 1994: Queen Gicanda murdered, massacres escalate in Butare Tutsi refugees began arriving in Kabgayi on April 20, seeking shelter in institutions such as St. Léon Petit Séminaire, St. Joseph College, the Major Seminary Philosophicum Kabgayi, Kabgayi Hospital, and the TRAFIPRO buildings (later referred to as CND during the Genocide). Attempts to take refuge inside Kabgayi Cathedral were blocked by Bishop Thaddée Nsengiyumva. Soon after their arrival, Interahamwe began abducting and killing Tutsi in and around the schools and the Kabgayi forest. Refugees from across the country converged in Kabgayi, making it a prime target for militias, many of whom arrived with lists of those seeking shelter. In Mayunzwe, a sector of the former Tambwe Commune in what is now Ruhango District, more than 850 Tutsi were massacred on a hill ominously named “Calvary.” In nearby Nyakarekare, 30 refugees were killed at the ADEPR Mbuye church. Their bodies were dumped into a pit at a slaughterhouse. These killings were orchestrated by Daniel Mafurebo, the Mbuye sector councilor. In Kamonyi District’s Bikungo bya Mukinga, Major Pierre Claver Karangwa, head of the National Gendarmerie Investigation Service, ordered the execution of Tutsi being transported to Kabgayi. ALSO READ:Tutsi in Kamonyi forced to dig their own graves, Sindikubwabo mobilises public to kill A particularly gruesome attack occurred on April 24 in Mugina, where Tutsi had taken refuge in a church. Eventually forced out, many were killed in an open field. The attackers claimed they would spare women and children and transport them to Kabgayi. Instead, after reaching Bibungo, they met Major Karangwa. When informed the group was en route to Kabgayi, Karangwa ordered their immediate execution. The victims—injured women, girls, and children—were herded into a house belonging to a Tutsi man named Moko. Others were thrown into a pit latrine. Karangwa supplied fuel, and both the house and the latrine were set on fire, burning the victims alive. After the Genocide, Karangwa fled to the Netherlands. He was arrested by Dutch authorities in May 2022.
