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The Washington has enforced penalties on a network of four individuals and four companies alleged of recruiting South American contractors to fight for and train a armed faction in Sudan the United States claims of committing genocide.

Group Makeup

Announcing the measures on this week, the American treasury stated the network was largely composed of individuals and businesses from Colombia.

Hundreds of former Colombian military personnel have reportedly travelled to the Sudanese warzone to operate with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a group linked to terrible atrocities including massacres based on ethnicity and widespread kidnappings.

Discovery of Participation

The role of these mercenaries was first uncovered in 2024, following an inquiry which revealed that hundreds of retired troops had been contracted to engage in combat – an discovery that prompted an unprecedented apology from the Colombian government.

Colombian ex-soldiers have long been considered as some of the most in-demand contractors globally due to their vast combat experience acquired during decades of civil war, training on Western military gear, and high-level combat training.

Role in the Conflict

In the Sudanese theater, the contractors have allegedly instructed underage fighters, taught fighters to pilot drones, and fought directly on the frontlines. One source previously stated that instructing minors was "terrible and insane" but commented that "unfortunately that’s how war is".

Sanctioned Individuals

Among those targeted was a dual national, a citizen of both Colombia and Italy and retired Colombian military officer operating from the United Arab Emirates. The US authorities said he had a pivotal function in enlisting and transporting former Colombian soldiers to Sudan. His wife, Claudia Viviana Oliveros Forero, was penalized as well.

Also on the sanctions list was Mateo Duque Botero, a dual Colombian-Spanish citizen who the Treasury stated ran a firm linked to managing finances and payments for the recruitment operation. "Recently, US-based firms linked to Duque carried out several money transfers, amounting to millions," the Treasury statement said.

Individual Mónica Muñoz Ucros was the final person to be penalized, with the entity she oversaw accused of wire transfers linked to Duque and his operations.

"The United States again calls on external actors to cease providing financial and military support to the combatants," the department announced.

Reaction

Elizabeth Dickinson, from a conflict think tank, described the measures as a "highly important" step, noting that "targeting the enablers is the correct approach".

Furthermore, the Colombian government recently passed a piece of legislation approving the anti-mercenary convention, designed to limit decades of Colombian involvement in foreign conflicts and change domestic defense strategy.

Another expert, a authority on private military contractors, urged more caution, stating that "restrictions are needed but not enough for dealing with rampant mercenarism".

"This is a shadow economy and centered in the Emirates, which is relatively sanction-proof," he stated. The Emirati government has been frequently alleged of providing arms to the militia, allegations it disputes. "More contractors from Colombia are likely," he advised.