The Human Cost
800,000
estimated total dead
Each dot below represents 1,000 human lives. Scroll to watch the scale unfold.
50,000 soldiers killed in combat, from wounds, or from disease. Each = 1,000 lives.
750,000 civilians killed — from violence, famine, disease, and displacement. Wars are not fought only by soldiers.
incl. 49,000 civilians
incl. 45,000 civilians
incl. 12,000 civilians
incl. 10,000 civilians
incl. 2 civilians
How 's dead compare to other conflicts and events.
2 dead
Approximately 2 million Hutus fled Rwanda after the RPF victory, fearing reprisals — including ~50,000 who died of cholera in Goma camps
95 dead
An estimated 95% of the Tutsi population of Kibuye Prefecture was killed
250,000 dead
Approximately 250,000–500,000 women and girls were raped during the genocide; HIV was deliberately spread as a weapon
500,000 dead
Estimates of total dead range from 500,000 to 1,000,000; 800,000 is the most widely cited figure and is used by the UN
533,333 dead
The Rwandan genocide proceeded at a rate approximately five times faster than the Holocaust in its most intensive phase