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The US government has enforced penalties on a group of several persons and entities charged of hiring South American contractors to combat alongside and instruct a armed faction in Sudan that Washington accuses of genocidal acts.

Group Makeup

Announcing the measures on this week, the Treasury stated the operation was mostly comprised of individuals and businesses from Colombia.

Hundreds of ex-soldiers from Colombia have been recruited to go to the Sudanese warzone to operate with the RSF paramilitary group, a group implicated in terrible atrocities including targeted ethnic killings and mass abductions.

Discovery of Participation

The involvement of Colombian fighters first came to light in 2024, prompted by an investigation which revealed that more than 300 retired troops had been hired to fight – an event that prompted an unprecedented apology from Colombia’s foreign ministry.

Colombian ex-soldiers have long been considered as some of the most in-demand contractors globally due to their vast combat experience acquired during years of internal conflict, training on advanced weaponry, and superior tactical education.

Activities in Sudan

In the conflict, the contractors have allegedly instructed minors, provided drone warfare training, and engaged in frontline combat. An individual involved previously stated that working with child soldiers was "terrible and insane" but commented that "sadly, that is the nature of conflict".

Sanctioned Individuals

Among those targeted was Álvaro Andrés Quijano Becerra, a dual Colombian-Italian national and ex-soldier operating from the United Arab Emirates. The government said he had a key part in recruiting and deploying ex-military personnel to Sudan. His wife, Claudia Viviana Oliveros Forero, was similarly targeted.

Also on the restricted list was Duque Botero, a dual Colombian-Spanish citizen who authorities say managed a business implicated in processing money and salaries for the recruitment operation. "Recently, American entities associated with Duque carried out several money transfers, totalling millions of US dollars," the Treasury statement noted.

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

"Washington reiterates its demand for foreign parties to cease providing monetary and weaponry aid to the combatants," the department announced.

Reaction

Elizabeth Dickinson, from a conflict think tank, described the sanctions as a "highly important" milestone, stating that "targeting the enablers is the proper strategy".

It was also noted that, Bogotá recently passed a law endorsing the global treaty against mercenarism, designed to limit years of participation by its nationals in foreign conflicts and change domestic defense strategy.

Sean McFate, a authority on private military contractors, urged more caution, saying that "penalties are required yet incomplete for dealing with widespread use of contractors".

"This is a shadow economy and centered in the Emirates, which is difficult to penalize," he commented. The UAE has been widely accused of providing arms to the militia, an accusation it has denied. "This trend will probably continue," McFate warned.