After fierce fighting in which French and Zairean troops are called in to assist the government, a cease-fire is signed on March 29, 1991. Throughout this period thousands of Tutsis are killed in separate massacres around the country. Opposition politicians and newspapers are persecuted. February 1993 RPF launches a fresh offensive and the guerillas reach the outskirts of Kigali. French forces are again called in to help the government side.
Fighting continues for several months.
Following months of negotiations, Habyarimana and the RPF sign a peace accord that allows for the return of refugees and a coalition Hutu-RPF government. 2,500 U.N. troops are deployed in Kigali to oversee the implementation of the accord. President Habyarimana stalls on setting up of power-sharing government. Training of militias intensifies. Extremist radio station, Radio Mille Collines, begins broadcasting exhortations to attack the Tutsis.