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The US government has imposed sanctions on a network of four people and four firms alleged of enlisting South American contractors to support and educate a armed faction in Sudan the United States claims of acts of genocide.

Operation Structure

Announcing the measures on this week, the US Treasury Department stated the scheme was largely composed of Colombian nationals and companies.

Hundreds of ex-soldiers from Colombia have allegedly journeyed to Sudan to operate with the RSF paramilitary group, a faction linked to terrible atrocities including ethnically targeted slaughter and widespread kidnappings.

Emergence of Involvement

The participation of ex-soldiers was first uncovered in 2024, following an investigation which revealed that over three hundred former soldiers had been recruited to engage in combat – an revelation that resulted in an rare mea culpa from the Colombian government.

Colombian ex-soldiers have widely regarded as some of the most in-demand contractors globally due to their extensive battlefield experience resulting from decades of civil war, training on Nato equipment, and high-level combat training.

Role in the Conflict

In Sudan, the mercenaries have been accused of teaching underage fighters, provided drone warfare training, and participated in direct battles. A mercenary previously stated that working with child soldiers was "horrific and irrational" but noted that "regrettably, war operates that way".

Named Entities

Among those sanctioned was a dual national, a individual with dual citizenship and retired Colombian military officer located in the United Arab Emirates. The US authorities accused him a key part in hiring and sending mercenaries to Sudan. His wife, Claudia Oliveros, was also sanctioned.

Also on the restricted list was Duque Botero, a dual Colombian-Spanish citizen who the Treasury stated managed a business implicated in handling funds and payroll for the network. "Over the past two years, companies in the United States associated with Duque engaged in several money transfers, totalling millions of US dollars," the official announcement noted.

Colombian national Mónica Muñoz Ucros was the fourth individual to be sanctioned, with the company she managed alleged to have money transfers connected to Duque and his operations.

"The US once more urges external actors to stop giving funding and arms to the belligerents," the Treasury stated.

Reaction

An expert, senior analyst at the International Crisis Group, called the sanctions as a "highly important" development, noting that "identifying the recruiters is the correct approach".

Furthermore, Colombia ratified a statute endorsing the global treaty against mercenarism, seeking to reduce decades of Colombian involvement in foreign conflicts and transform national security policy.

Sean McFate, an expert on mercenaries, advised additional measures, stating that "restrictions are needed but not enough for dealing with the growing mercenary trade".

"This is a shadow economy and based out of the UAE, which is difficult to penalize," he commented. The United Arab Emirates has been widely accused of supplying weapons to the paramilitary group, an accusation it has denied. "More contractors from Colombia are likely," McFate warned.