More than thirty years after the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, a group of veteran African UN peacekeepers who risked their lives to protect civilians have returned to Rwanda for a deeply emotional and historic visit.
From August 14 to 20, 2025, former troops from Ghana and Senegal who famously defied UN orders to withdraw, will retrace their steps through the very sites where they stood guard during one of history’s darkest chapters.
The delegation includes Maj Gen (Rtd) Clayton Boanubah Yaache from Ghana, Brig Gen (Rtd) Martin Owusu-Ababio from Ghana, Brig Gen Elhadji Babacar Faye from Senegal, Brig Gen Stephen Parbey from Ghana, Major (Rtd) Peter Sosi from Ghana, Ex WO II Lucas Norvihoho from Ghana, and Ex WO I Sampson Agyare from Ghana.
Many of these men took extraordinary risks in 1994 to protect civilians in locations such as Hôtel des Mille Collines, where more than 1,200 Tutsis found refuge, and the former ETO Kicukiro, where their forced withdrawal under UN orders led to mass killings.
Speaking at the Kigali Genocide Memorial, Faye recalled the harrowing memories stirred by photographs on display, some of which he had witnessed firsthand.
“Among the photographs I saw today, there are some that I experienced in person with the people who took them. Being a witness to the genocide is not really a privilege, because we experienced truly horrific things that we would have wished to erase from our memory immediately,” he said.
For Faye, the visit was both an opportunity to honor victims and a call to action for younger generations. He urged them to live by the principle of “never again,” stressing that genocide is planned and can be prevented by challenging the ideology that fuels it.
He also praised Rwanda’s transformation, calling it “a rich example for many African countries” and noting that patriotism has been central to its rapid recovery.
Maj Gen Yaache remembered arriving in Rwanda in 1994 and witnessing, in part, the atrocities that unfolded between April and July. The memorial visit, he said, had deepened his understanding of the full scale of the tragedy.
“We received testimony and got an in-depth look at what happened during this period. I’m emotional and I’m lost for words at what I saw,” he reflected.
The tour, organized by the Isōko Centre for Humanity in partnership with the Aegis Trust, is designed to preserve the rarely told testimonies of these men, stories that bridge the perspectives of survivors, rescuers, and liberators.
It includes visits to memorials, former UN bases, and sites of rescue missions such as Amahoro Stadium, Byumba, Mulindi Liberation Museum, Nyanza, and the Reconciliation Village in Bugesera, where survivors and perpetrators live side by side.
For Alice Wairimu Nderitu, Global President of the Isōko Centre for Humanity, the return of these peacekeepers represents more than commemoration, it is a reaffirmation of Africa’s highest ideals of compassion, solidarity, and the protection of human life.
Freddy Mutanguha, CEO of the Aegis Trust, described hosting the delegation as a profound act of gratitude, noting that their courage during the genocide stands as a powerful reminder of what it means to protect humanity when politics fail.
Despite being largely unknown to the wider public, the actions of these veterans left an indelible mark on Rwanda’s history.
They remained in the country despite losing operational support, placing themselves in direct danger and becoming witnesses to both unspeakable atrocities and extraordinary acts of resilience.
The visit will conclude with a press conference at Zaria Courts, the former UN peacekeeping headquarters during the genocide. For the veterans, it will be a moment to reflect on their return and to speak directly about the moral choices they made in 1994.
For Rwandans, it is a reminder that even when much of the world turned away, some stood firm, choosing humanity over orders, and courage over fear.
