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The US government has enforced penalties on a group of four individuals and four companies accused of hiring Colombian mercenaries to combat alongside and instruct a militia force in Sudan which the US alleges of genocidal acts.

Network Composition

Announcing the measures on Tuesday, the American treasury stated the scheme was mostly comprised of Colombian nationals and companies.

Hundreds of ex-soldiers from Colombia have been recruited to go to the conflict in Sudan to operate with the Sudanese RSF militia, a force accused of horrific war crimes encompassing ethnically targeted slaughter and widespread kidnappings.

Emergence of Involvement

The participation of ex-soldiers initially emerged in 2024, following an investigation which found that hundreds of former soldiers had been hired to engage in combat – an revelation that prompted an unusual statement of regret from Colombia’s foreign ministry.

These South American veterans have widely regarded as highly prized fighters in conflict zones due to their vast combat experience gleaned from decades of civil war, training on Nato equipment, and superior tactical education.

Reported Actions

In the Sudanese theater, the mercenaries have reportedly trained child soldiers, provided drone warfare training, and participated in direct battles. One source remarked that training children was "terrible and insane" but commented that "regrettably, war operates that way".

Sanctioned Individuals

Among those targeted was a retired Colombian officer, a citizen of both Colombia and Italy and retired Colombian military officer operating from the United Arab Emirates. The US authorities alleged he played a key part in recruiting and deploying former Colombian soldiers to Sudan. His spouse, Claudia Viviana Oliveros Forero, was similarly targeted.

Also on the restricted list was Duque Botero, a individual with Colombian and Spanish citizenship who authorities say ran a firm accused of processing money and salaries for the scheme. "Recently, American entities linked to Duque engaged in numerous wire transfers, totalling millions of US dollars," the Treasury statement said.

Colombian national Mónica Muñoz Ucros was the other individual to be penalized, with the entity she oversaw alleged to have wire transfers associated with Duque and his companies.

"The US once more urges external actors to stop giving monetary and weaponry aid to the combatants," the Treasury said in a statement.

Reaction

A senior analyst, with the International Crisis Group, labeled the actions as a "highly important" development, saying that "targeting the enablers is the proper strategy".

She added that, Colombia recently passed a statute endorsing the anti-mercenary convention, designed to limit its citizens' long history in foreign conflicts and change domestic defense strategy.

Another expert, a authority on private military contractors, urged more caution, saying that "penalties are required yet incomplete for dealing with widespread use of contractors".

"It operates in the black market and operating from Dubai, which is largely insulated from sanctions," he stated. The United Arab Emirates has been frequently alleged of supplying weapons to the paramilitary group, an accusation it has denied. "More contractors from Colombia are likely," the expert cautioned.