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The US government has enforced penalties on a group of several persons and entities charged of hiring Colombian mercenaries to combat alongside and instruct a militia force in Sudan the United States claims of acts of genocide.

Network Composition

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

Hundreds of ex-soldiers from Colombia have reportedly travelled to Sudan to operate with the RSF paramilitary group, a faction linked to severe violations including massacres based on ethnicity and large-scale abductions.

Discovery of Participation

The involvement of Colombian fighters was first uncovered in 2024, after an investigation which found that over three hundred retired troops had been recruited to fight – an event that resulted in an rare mea culpa from officials in Bogotá.

These South American veterans have long been considered as highly prized fighters in conflict zones due to their considerable warzone knowledge gleaned from years of internal conflict, knowledge of Western military gear, and elite military instruction.

Reported Actions

In Sudan, the mercenaries have reportedly trained child soldiers, provided drone warfare training, and engaged in frontline combat. One source was quoted as saying that instructing minors was "horrific and irrational" but commented that "regrettably, war operates that way".

Targeted Persons

Among those penalized was Álvaro Andrés Quijano Becerra, a dual Colombian-Italian national and retired Colombian military officer based in the United Arab Emirates. The government alleged he played a key part in recruiting and deploying mercenaries to Sudan. His wife, Claudia Oliveros, was similarly targeted.

Also on the penalty list was Duque Botero, a individual with Colombian and Spanish citizenship who the Treasury stated managed a business linked to processing money and salaries for the network. "Recently, companies in the United States linked to Duque carried out numerous wire transfers, totalling millions of US dollars," the Treasury statement noted.

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

"The US once more urges external actors to halt the flow of monetary and weaponry aid to the belligerents," the department announced.

Expert Analysis

Elizabeth Dickinson, with the International Crisis Group, called the sanctions as a "very significant" step, saying that "targeting the enablers is the right way to go".

It was also noted that, the Colombian government has enacted a piece of legislation approving the global treaty against mercenarism, aiming to curb its citizens' long history in overseas wars and reshape its security approach.

A mercenary specialist, an expert on mercenaries, urged more caution, stating that "sanctions are necessary but insufficient for dealing with the growing mercenary trade".

"This is a shadow economy and based out of Dubai, which is largely insulated from sanctions," he stated. The UAE has been widely accused of arming the RSF, an accusation it has denied. "More contractors from Colombia are likely," McFate warned.