Washington Levies Restrictions on Group Alleged of Recruiting South American Mercenaries to the Sudanese Conflict.

The US government has imposed sanctions on a network of four individuals and four companies charged of hiring South American contractors to support and educate a Sudanese paramilitary group the United States claims of committing genocide.

Network Composition

Revealing the measures on Tuesday, the US Treasury Department stated the operation was largely composed of Colombian nationals and companies.

Hundreds of former Colombian military personnel have been recruited to go to Sudan to fight alongside the Sudanese RSF militia, a group accused of horrific war crimes such as targeted ethnic killings and widespread kidnappings.

Emergence of Involvement

The role of these mercenaries initially emerged in 2024, following an report which found that over three hundred former soldiers had been hired to engage in combat – an discovery that prompted an rare mea culpa from the Colombian government.

Former Colombian military have widely regarded as among the world’s most sought-after mercenaries due to their vast combat experience acquired during decades of civil war, knowledge of advanced weaponry, and superior tactical education.

Role in the Conflict

In the Sudanese theater, the mercenaries have allegedly instructed child soldiers, taught fighters to pilot drones, and participated in direct battles. An individual involved was quoted as saying that instructing minors was "awful and crazy" but noted that "sadly, that is the nature of conflict".

Targeted Persons

Among those penalized was Álvaro Andrés Quijano Becerra, a citizen of both Colombia and Italy and ex-soldier operating from the United Arab Emirates. The government said he had a central role in enlisting and transporting former Colombian soldiers to Sudan. His wife, Claudia Oliveros, was also sanctioned.

Also on the sanctions list was Mateo Andrés Duque Botero, a dual Colombian-Spanish citizen who the Treasury stated managed a business 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, amounting to millions," the government release said.

Colombian national Mónica Muñoz was the other individual to be sanctioned, with the company she managed alleged to have financial transactions linked to Duque and his companies.

"The US once more urges outside forces to halt the flow of funding and arms to the combatants," the agency announced.

Reaction

An expert, with the International Crisis Group, described the sanctions as a "major" milestone, stating that "calling out those who are doing the contracting is the right way to go".

She added that, the Colombian government recently passed a law endorsing the global treaty against mercenarism, aiming to curb years of participation by its nationals in overseas wars and change national security policy.

Another expert, a scholar on the subject, called for greater wariness, stating that "restrictions are needed but not enough for dealing with the growing mercenary trade".

"It’s an illicit economy and based out of the UAE, which is difficult to penalize," he said. The United Arab Emirates has been frequently alleged of arming the RSF, claims it rejects. "This trend will probably continue," McFate warned.