ARUSHA, Tanzania — The Canadian commander of peacekeepers in Rwanda during the 1994 genocide ended his testimony Tuesday before a UN tribunal, reiterating his account of the days leading up to the bloody massacres under cross-examination by defence attorneys.

Retired Lt.-Gen. Romeo Dallaire described how he tried to persuade both the Hutu extremist government and the Tutsi rebels to stop violating peace accords they had signed a year earlier. Later, more than 500,000 people were killed, mostly Tutsis, in government-orchestrated massacres.

Col. Theoneste Bagosora, Brig. Gen. Gratien Kabiligi, Col. Anatole Nsengiyumva and Maj. Aloys Ntabakuze, former officers in the Rwandan army, have pleaded not guilty to charges of genocide and crimes against humanity in the 100-day slaughter.

Dallaire is considered a key witness against the men, who prosecutors say organized the genocide.

Peter Erlinder, Ntabakuze's defence attorney, pressed Dallaire on reports that the Tutsi rebels had violated the peace accords before the genocide by moving troops out of designated areas. Dallaire said both sides made minor incursions into the other sides' territory and that he insisted both sides respect the peace deal.

Defence lawyers have tried to discredit Dallaire's testimony because he has suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of his experiences in Rwanda. He attempted to kill himself once and has had psychological treatment.

Bagosora's attorney, Raphael Constant, pressed Dallaire on Monday about why some events he described in testimony were not in his book, Shake Hands with the Devil, or were not in UN situation reports he filed during the genocide.

Constant specifically wanted to know why Dallaire had never mentioned before that Bagosora threatened to kill him.

Dallaire testified earlier before the tribunal that Bagosora had threatened his life. "I was threatened with a pistol (by Bagosora) and was told that next time he will kill me," Dallaire, 57, told the tribunal.

Bagosora has denied he threatened Dallaire.

At one point in the proceedings, Dallaire was forced to retract a statement in which he said Bagosora led a May 1, 1994, meeting of militiamen who were killing civilians.

"I have before me a situation report that I sent to New York on the first of May, 1994, which clearly states that Bagosora was not at the event," Dallaire said. He added, however, that he believed Bagosora had arranged the meeting.

Earlier, Dallaire had testified that his messages to UN headquarters in New York that a genocide was being planned were ignored. He also reiterated his belief that UN officials and the international community refused to recognize the threat of massacres at the time and failed to take action to stop them.

After concluding his testimony, Dallaire said outside the tribunal hearing that seeing Bagosora again -- 10 years after they last met face-to-face during the genocide -- was extremely emotional for him.

"Those emotions are for me to try to identify and quantify, and maybe I will be able to give you a decent answer some day," Dallaire told reporters.

He also said he wants to visit Rwanda in the future, when he feels ready.

"An opportunity, I hope, will present itself that I may be able to spend a couple of years in Rwanda, mourning and also re-establishing the contacts with the spirits."