Publish Date: May 16, 1994
Cover Story: The Killing Fields of Rwanda
How TIME Covered the News: The world watched in mute horror as ethnic Hutu militia carried out pogroms of ethnic Tutsis, a genocide whose trauma is still felt today in Rwanda.
“Western nations quickly whisked their nationals to safety, leaving terrified Rwandans to fend for themselves. As the tales of murder began to filter out, it became clear that there were no sanctuaries: blood flowed down the aisles of churches where many sought refuge; five priests and 12 women hiding out in a Jesuit center were slaughtered. A Red Cross ambulance was stopped at a checkpoint, the six wounded patients dragged out and bayoneted to death. Toddlers lay sliced in half, and mothers with babies strapped to their backs sprawled dead on the streets of Kigali. The fighting was hand to hand, intimate and unspeakable, a kind of bloodlust that left those who managed to escape it hollow eyed and mute.”