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The US government has enforced penalties on a operation of four individuals and four companies charged of enlisting Colombian mercenaries to combat alongside and instruct a militia force in Sudan that Washington accuses of acts of genocide.

Operation Structure

Announcing the restrictions on this week, the US Treasury Department stated the scheme was mostly comprised of individuals and businesses from Colombia.

Hundreds of retired Colombian troops have reportedly travelled to the Sudanese warzone to combat beside the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a faction implicated in terrible atrocities including massacres based on ethnicity and widespread kidnappings.

Discovery of Participation

The participation of ex-soldiers initially emerged in 2024, after an investigation which found that over three hundred retired troops had been contracted to engage in combat – an revelation that resulted in an unprecedented apology from Colombia’s foreign ministry.

These South American veterans have historically been seen as among the world’s most sought-after mercenaries due to their extensive battlefield experience resulting from decades of civil war, training on advanced weaponry, and superior tactical education.

Role in the Conflict

In Sudan, the contractors have been accused of teaching child soldiers, provided drone warfare training, and participated in direct battles. A mercenary remarked that instructing minors was "horrific and irrational" but noted that "unfortunately that’s how war is".

Sanctioned Individuals

Among those targeted was Álvaro Andrés Quijano Becerra, a citizen of both Colombia and Italy and ex-soldier operating from the Dubai. The government said he had a central role in enlisting and transporting former Colombian soldiers to Sudan. His spouse, Claudia Oliveros, was similarly targeted.

Also on the restricted list was Mateo Andrés Duque Botero, a dual Colombian-Spanish citizen who officials alleged ran a firm implicated in managing finances and payments for the recruitment operation. "Over the past two years, American entities connected to Duque carried out numerous wire transfers, totalling millions of US dollars," the Treasury statement said.

Individual Mónica Muñoz Ucros was the final person to be penalized, with the firm she operated said to have conducted money transfers linked to Duque and his operations.

"Washington reiterates its demand for outside forces to halt the flow of funding and arms to the belligerents," the department announced.

Analyst Commentary

Elizabeth Dickinson, from a conflict think tank, called the actions as a "highly important" development, saying that "targeting the enablers is the correct approach".

It was also noted that, Colombia has enacted a law approving the anti-mercenary convention, designed to limit decades of Colombian involvement in foreign conflicts and transform its security approach.

Another expert, a scholar on the subject, called for greater wariness, saying 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 stated. The UAE has been frequently alleged of supplying weapons to the paramilitary group, claims it rejects. "More contractors from Colombia are likely," the expert cautioned.