ABSTRACT
During 1996 and 1997, in what became called the "First Congo War," Rwandan forces invaded eastern Zaire Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in support of local rebels called the Alliance of Democratic Forces for Liberation (AFDL). However, in 1998, a United Nations investigative team visited DRC and concluded that Rwandan soldiers and AFDL rebels had massacred unarmed Rwandan Hutu refugees and that this might constitute genocide. The UN team could not complete its investigation as it was hindered by the DRC's new AFDL government which, at the time, was dependent on Rwandan forces. Many Rwandans managed to flee Wendji in the direction of Mbandaka, while others fled into the swamps north of Wendji. An unknown number of Rwandans were killed elsewhere in the town. Many corpses were left untouched for two days, particularly those not killed in the port area.
