The Cambodian genocide was a period of genocide that took place in Cambodia from 1975 to 1979 under the rule of the Khmer Rouge, a communist party led by Pol Pot. More than two million people died at the hands of the Khmer Rouge in total, representing a quarter of Cambodia's total population. Most of the victims belonged to ethnic minorities that the Khmer Rouge saw as a threat to its ideological goals. Many people died from executions, political persecution, overwork, malnutrition and poor medical care. Intellectuals, teachers, former government officials, Buddhists, religious minorities, ethnic Chinese and those associated with the Western community or previous government regime perished in large numbers. It amounted to approximately a quarter of the entire nation.