An independent inquiry team - headed by former Swedish Prime Minister
Ingvar Carlsson - said the UN had ignored evidence that genocide was
planned and had refused to act once it had started.
The inquiry concluded that the UN should apologise to the Rwandan
people.
In response, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan expressed bitter regret
and promised action to prevent another such disaster. A Rwandan
presidential spokesman said Mr Annan should come to Kigali in person to
apologise.
"We expect the secretary-general to come here to personally
offer his apologies and those of the UN. We hope he will take the
trouble because he was in charge at the time," said Patrick
Mazimhaka, minister in the president's office.
The report highlights the role of Mr Annan, who was head of UN
peacekeeping at the time, sharply criticising
his failure to act on a warning of the risk of genocide sent by the
head of the UN peacekeepers in Rwanda.
It also criticises Belgium for unilaterally withdrawing its
peacekeepers after the murder of 10 of its soldiers.
The decision of peacekeepers to retreat from a school, leaving
civilians inside to be butchered, is described as
"disgraceful".
The inquiry makes a number of policy recommendations designed to
ensure similar failings do not happen again.
Holocaust comparison
Mr Annan asked the inquiry team to examine the issue after persistent
criticism of the UN's failure to act on
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warnings.The three-man inquiry team was appointed in April. It
conducted interviews with key players and had access to the UN's files.
Handing his report to Mr Annan, Mr Carlsson compared the events in
Rwanda with the Nazi holocaust against the Jews in World War II.
The inquiry chairman said he hoped his report would help heal the
wrongs and avert any future genocide.
