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The United States has levied restrictions on a network of four individuals and four companies alleged of recruiting Colombian mercenaries to support and educate a militia force in Sudan which the US alleges of genocidal acts.

Group Makeup

Disclosing the restrictions on Tuesday, the Treasury stated the operation was largely composed of Colombian nationals and companies.

Hundreds of ex-soldiers from Colombia have reportedly travelled to the conflict in Sudan to combat beside the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a group accused of terrible atrocities encompassing massacres based on ethnicity and large-scale abductions.

Emergence of Involvement

The participation of ex-soldiers was first uncovered the previous year, following an report which revealed that hundreds of ex-military personnel had been contracted to engage in combat – an event that resulted in an unprecedented apology from the Colombian government.

Former Colombian military have historically been seen as some of the most in-demand contractors globally due to their considerable warzone knowledge resulting from decades of civil war, knowledge of advanced weaponry, and elite military instruction.

Role in the Conflict

In Sudan, the contractors have allegedly instructed minors, taught fighters to pilot drones, and participated in direct battles. An individual involved previously stated that instructing minors was "terrible and insane" but added that "regrettably, war operates that way".

Sanctioned Individuals

Among those sanctioned was a retired Colombian officer, a individual with dual citizenship and retired Colombian military officer based in the United Arab Emirates. The Treasury said he had a central role in recruiting and deploying former Colombian soldiers to Sudan. His spouse, Claudia Viviana Oliveros Forero, was penalized as well.

Also on the sanctions list was Mateo Andrés Duque Botero, a individual with Colombian and Spanish citizenship who authorities say oversaw a company implicated in managing finances and payments for the scheme. "In 2024 and 2025, US-based firms associated with Duque conducted numerous wire transfers, totalling millions of US dollars," the official announcement noted.

Colombian national Mónica Muñoz Ucros was the final person to be targeted, with the company she managed alleged to have money transfers connected to Duque and his operations.

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

Reaction

An expert, from a conflict think tank, described the sanctions as a "major" development, noting that "identifying the recruiters is the correct approach".

Furthermore, the Colombian government recently passed a statute ratifying the anti-mercenary convention, aiming to curb years of participation by its nationals in international fights and change domestic defense strategy.

Another expert, a scholar on the subject, called for greater wariness, stating that "penalties are required yet incomplete for addressing the growing mercenary trade".

"This is a shadow economy and centered in Dubai, which is largely insulated from sanctions," he stated. The Emirati government has been frequently alleged of providing arms to the militia, claims it rejects. "This trend will probably continue," the expert cautioned.