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The United States has imposed sanctions on a group of four people and four firms alleged of enlisting former Colombian soldiers to fight for and train a militia force in Sudan the United States claims of committing genocide.

Group Makeup

Revealing the restrictions on Tuesday, the American treasury stated the operation was mostly comprised of individuals and businesses from Colombia.

Scores of retired Colombian troops have reportedly travelled to the conflict in Sudan to fight alongside the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a group implicated in horrific war crimes including ethnically targeted slaughter and widespread kidnappings.

Revelation of Role

The participation of ex-soldiers initially emerged in 2024, prompted by an investigation which disclosed that hundreds of ex-military personnel had been contracted to engage in combat – an discovery that resulted in an rare mea culpa from Colombia’s foreign ministry.

Colombian ex-soldiers have long been considered as some of the most in-demand contractors globally due to their vast combat experience resulting from years of internal conflict, familiarity with advanced weaponry, and high-level combat training.

Reported Actions

In the Sudanese theater, the Colombians have allegedly instructed child soldiers, taught fighters to pilot drones, and fought directly on the frontlines. A mercenary remarked that training children was "awful and crazy" but noted that "regrettably, war operates that way".

Targeted Persons

Among those targeted was a dual national, a individual with dual citizenship and retired Colombian military officer located in the Dubai. The Treasury said he had a pivotal function in hiring and sending mercenaries to Sudan. His wife, Claudia Viviana Oliveros Forero, was penalized as well.

Also on the penalty list was Mateo Andrés Duque Botero, a individual with Colombian and Spanish citizenship who officials alleged ran a firm accused of processing money and salaries for the recruitment operation. "Recently, American entities associated with Duque engaged in multiple financial transactions, amounting to millions," the official announcement stated.

Individual Mónica Muñoz Ucros was the other individual to be sanctioned, with the firm she operated accused of financial transactions connected to Duque and his operations.

"Washington reiterates its demand for external actors to halt the flow of financial and military support to the combatants," the agency announced.

Reaction

Elizabeth Dickinson, senior analyst at the International Crisis Group, described the sanctions as a "major" development, noting that "identifying the recruiters is the correct approach".

It was also noted that, Colombia ratified a law ratifying the anti-mercenary convention, seeking to reduce years of participation by its nationals in international fights and reshape national security policy.

Another expert, a authority on private military contractors, advised additional measures, saying that "restrictions are needed but not enough for combating the growing mercenary trade".

"This is a shadow economy and based out of the UAE, which is relatively sanction-proof," he commented. The UAE has been repeatedly implicated of providing arms to the militia, allegations it disputes. "Expect more Colombian mercenaries," McFate warned.