🔗 Share this article

The United States has enforced penalties on a group of four individuals and four companies accused of recruiting South American contractors to fight for and train a militia force in Sudan which the US alleges of acts of genocide.

Network Composition

Disclosing the sanctions on this week, the US Treasury Department stated the operation was primarily made up of Colombian citizens and firms.

Scores of retired Colombian troops have been recruited to go to the conflict in Sudan to fight alongside the Sudanese RSF militia, a faction implicated in horrific war crimes including ethnically targeted slaughter and mass abductions.

Discovery of Participation

The participation of ex-soldiers was first uncovered last year, prompted by an report which found that over three hundred ex-military personnel had been recruited to participate in the war – an discovery that led to an unprecedented apology 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 decades of civil war, familiarity with Nato equipment, and high-level combat training.

Role in the Conflict

In the conflict, the Colombians have been accused of teaching minors, provided drone warfare training, and participated in direct battles. A mercenary was quoted as saying that training children was "awful and crazy" but noted that "regrettably, war operates that way".

Named Entities

Among those sanctioned was Álvaro Andrés Quijano Becerra, a individual with dual citizenship and retired Colombian military officer operating from the UAE. The Treasury accused him a key part in recruiting and deploying former Colombian soldiers to Sudan. His spouse, Claudia Oliveros, was similarly targeted.

Also on the sanctions list was Mateo Andrés Duque Botero, a dual Colombian-Spanish citizen who officials alleged ran a firm accused of handling funds and payroll for the scheme. "In 2024 and 2025, companies in the United States linked to Duque conducted numerous wire transfers, worth millions," the official announcement noted.

Individual Mónica Muñoz Ucros was the other individual to be penalized, with the firm she operated said to have conducted wire transfers associated with Duque and his companies.

"The US once more urges outside forces to cease providing funding and arms to the belligerents," the agency stated.

Reaction

A senior analyst, from a conflict think tank, called the actions as a "highly important" step, saying that "targeting the enablers is the proper strategy".

It was also noted that, the Colombian government ratified a statute endorsing the global treaty against mercenarism, seeking to reduce its citizens' long history in international fights and reshape domestic defense strategy.

Another expert, an expert on mercenaries, advised additional measures, noting that "sanctions are necessary but insufficient for addressing rampant mercenarism".

"It operates in the black market and centered in Dubai, which is relatively sanction-proof," he stated. The United Arab Emirates has been widely accused of arming the RSF, claims it rejects. "This trend will probably continue," he advised.