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The United States has imposed sanctions on a network of four individuals and four companies alleged of enlisting South American contractors to combat alongside and instruct a Sudanese paramilitary group which the US alleges of acts of genocide.

Group Makeup

Revealing the sanctions on this week, the Treasury stated the network was primarily made up of Colombian nationals and companies.

Numerous of ex-soldiers from Colombia have allegedly journeyed to Sudan to combat beside the Sudanese RSF militia, a faction linked to horrific war crimes encompassing ethnically targeted slaughter and mass abductions.

Emergence of Involvement

The participation of ex-soldiers was first uncovered in 2024, after an report which disclosed that over three hundred retired troops had been recruited to engage in combat – an discovery that prompted an unprecedented apology from officials in Bogotá.

Former Colombian military have widely regarded as some of the most in-demand contractors globally due to their vast combat experience acquired during decades of civil war, training on Nato equipment, and superior tactical education.

Activities in Sudan

In the conflict, the mercenaries have allegedly instructed underage fighters, instructed militiamen in drone operation, and participated in direct battles. An individual involved was quoted as saying that training children was "horrific and irrational" but commented that "regrettably, war operates that way".

Sanctioned Individuals

Among those targeted was a dual national, a dual Colombian-Italian national and former army officer operating from the Dubai. The Treasury alleged he played a key part in hiring and sending ex-military personnel to Sudan. His spouse, Claudia Viviana Oliveros Forero, was also sanctioned.

Also on the sanctions list was Duque Botero, a dual Colombian-Spanish citizen who the Treasury stated oversaw a company accused of processing money and salaries for the scheme. "In 2024 and 2025, American entities associated with Duque carried out several money transfers, worth millions," the official announcement stated.

Colombian national Mónica Muñoz Ucros was the final person to be penalized, with the firm she operated said to have conducted wire transfers connected to Duque and his operations.

"The US once more urges foreign parties to stop giving financial and military support to the warring parties," the agency announced.

Expert Analysis

A senior analyst, from a conflict think tank, labeled the sanctions as a "highly important" milestone, noting that "targeting the enablers is the proper strategy".

Furthermore, the Colombian government ratified a law ratifying the anti-mercenary convention, designed to limit its citizens' long history in overseas wars and change national security policy.

Sean McFate, a authority on private military contractors, urged more caution, noting that "penalties are required yet incomplete for combating the growing mercenary trade".

"It operates in the black market and operating from Dubai, which is difficult to penalize," he stated. The United Arab Emirates has been repeatedly implicated of arming the RSF, claims it rejects. "More contractors from Colombia are likely," McFate warned.