Working Group Formation to Deal with the Situation in Kigali and Bujumbura

The U.S. and the Genocide in Rwanda 1994 The Assassination of the Presidents and the Beginning of the "Apocalypse" U.S. Department of State, Telegram State 092008, "WGRW01: Working Group Formation to Deal with the Situation in Kigali and Bujumbura",... More

The U.S. and the Genocide in Rwanda 1994 The Assassination of the Presidents and the Beginning of the "Apocalypse" U.S. Department of State, Telegram State 092008, "WGRW01: Working Group Formation to Deal with the Situation in Kigali and Bujumbura", April 8, 1994 (Freedom of Information Act release) At 1 PM on April 7th, Secretary of State Warren Christopher established a "24-hour working group" as "the center of all Department activity" concerning "the situation in Kigali and Bujumbura." The task force concluded its work April 15, following the evacuation of American citizens and the closure of the U.S. Embassy. Notably, at this early stage, the State Department apparently perceived the crisis as confined to the capitals of both countries. Christopher appointed Deputy Assistant Secretary Bushnell as head of the task force. Bushnell would go on to play a major role in the U.S. response to the genocide; after the working group concluded, she headed an inter-agency task force Less