This paper will answer three central questions; firstly, what was the background and need for United Nations Observer Mission in Uganda-Rwanda (“UNOMUR”) and subsequently United Nations Assistance Mission For Rwanda (“UNAMIR”); secondly, what caused the missions to fail; and thirdly, what were the lessons learned and to what extent can these lessons be useful in future and on-going operations? I will argue that the mandate for UNOMUR was too narrow, and UNAMIR, without the political will for support, was a catastrophe waiting to happen. In the future, the United Nations Security Council (“UNSC”) needs to find the political will if it is to do the job it was empowered to as the world’s police force and the protector of human rights.