Between 1934 and 1945, an estimated 11 million people were persecuted and killed in Europe. The Nazi attempt to eradicate gypsies, Jews, the disabled, homosexuals and people of different ideologies, horrified the world and led to new international laws aimed at preventing genocide and protecting human rights. In 1948, the United Nations adopted the United Nations Convention on Genocide, where the nations of the world promised - to commit themselves to prevent - further barbarities.