The 1994 Rwandan genocide left a shattered society and raised urgent demands for accountability. The United Nations Security Council reacted by setting up the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) by Resolution 955 of 8 November 1994 to try individuals most responsible for genocide and other serious violations of international humanitarian law committed during 1994. This paper looks at ICTR’s mandate, key jurisprudential outcomes (in particular Akayesu, Kambanda, Nahimana et al. and Bagosora), and the myriad difficulties it encountered – procedural delay, high cost, perceived selectivity, distance from victims geographically and culturally, and reconciliation limits. On the basis of legal documents, records of the tribunal and learned commentary, the research provides lessons for future international criminal instruments and makes some practical recommendations to improve timeliness, local incorporation and victim-centred construction. The paper concludes that ICTR’s legal contribution is substantive, but its operational constraints present some cautionary lessons for present and future accountability initiatives.