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The United States has levied restrictions on a network of four people and four firms charged of hiring Colombian mercenaries to combat alongside and instruct a Sudanese paramilitary group which the US alleges of acts of genocide.

Operation Structure

Disclosing the measures on this week, the American treasury stated the scheme was mostly comprised of Colombian citizens and firms.

Hundreds of ex-soldiers from Colombia have been recruited to go to Sudan to combat beside the RSF paramilitary group, a faction implicated in horrific war crimes including massacres based on ethnicity and widespread kidnappings.

Discovery of Participation

The role of these mercenaries initially emerged the previous year, prompted by an inquiry which found that more than 300 retired troops had been recruited to engage in combat – an revelation that resulted in an unprecedented apology from officials in Bogotá.

Colombian ex-soldiers have widely regarded as highly prized fighters in conflict zones due to their extensive battlefield experience acquired during years of internal conflict, knowledge of advanced weaponry, and superior tactical education.

Role in the Conflict

In the conflict, the mercenaries have allegedly instructed minors, taught fighters to pilot drones, and engaged in frontline combat. A mercenary was quoted as saying that instructing minors was "horrific and irrational" but commented that "unfortunately that’s how war is".

Targeted Persons

Among those targeted was Álvaro Andrés Quijano Becerra, a dual Colombian-Italian national and ex-soldier located in the United Arab Emirates. The government accused him a central role in enlisting and transporting former Colombian soldiers to Sudan. His spouse, Claudia Viviana Oliveros Forero, was similarly targeted.

Also on the sanctions list was Mateo Andrés Duque Botero, a individual with Colombian and Spanish citizenship who authorities say managed a business implicated in managing finances and payments for the scheme. "In 2024 and 2025, American entities associated with Duque carried out numerous wire transfers, totalling millions of US dollars," the official announcement noted.

Colombian national Mónica Muñoz was the final person to be targeted, with the company she managed accused of wire transfers connected to Duque and his operations.

"Washington reiterates its demand for external actors to cease providing financial and military support to the combatants," the department said in a statement.

Analyst Commentary

An expert, senior analyst at the International Crisis Group, described the measures as a "very significant" milestone, stating that "identifying the recruiters is the right way to go".

Furthermore, Colombia recently passed a law approving the global treaty against mercenarism, aiming to curb decades of Colombian involvement in overseas wars and transform its security approach.

Sean McFate, a authority on private military contractors, advised additional measures, noting that "penalties are required yet incomplete for addressing the growing mercenary trade".

"It’s an illicit economy and based out of the UAE, which is relatively sanction-proof," he commented. The Emirati government has been repeatedly implicated of supplying weapons to the paramilitary group, allegations it disputes. "More contractors from Colombia are likely," he advised.