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The Washington has imposed sanctions on a operation of four people and four firms alleged of recruiting South American contractors to fight for and train a armed faction in Sudan that Washington accuses of acts of genocide.

Network Composition

Announcing the sanctions on this week, the Treasury stated the scheme was largely composed of Colombian nationals and companies.

Scores of former Colombian military personnel have reportedly travelled to Sudan to fight alongside the RSF paramilitary group, a group accused of horrific war crimes including massacres based on ethnicity and mass abductions.

Emergence of Involvement

The role of these mercenaries initially emerged last year, following an inquiry which found that hundreds of retired troops had been contracted to engage in combat – an event that prompted an rare mea culpa from officials in Bogotá.

Colombian ex-soldiers have widely regarded as some of the most in-demand contractors globally due to their extensive battlefield experience resulting from a long-running domestic war, knowledge of Western military gear, and superior tactical education.

Activities in Sudan

In Sudan, the Colombians have reportedly trained child soldiers, taught fighters to pilot drones, and participated in direct battles. An individual involved was quoted as saying that working with child soldiers was "terrible and insane" but added that "regrettably, war operates that way".

Named Entities

Among those sanctioned was Álvaro Andrés Quijano Becerra, a dual Colombian-Italian national and retired Colombian military officer based in the United Arab Emirates. The Treasury said he had a pivotal function in hiring and sending mercenaries to Sudan. His spouse, Claudia Oliveros, was similarly targeted.

Also on the sanctions list was Duque Botero, a individual with Colombian and Spanish citizenship who the Treasury stated managed a business linked to processing money and salaries for the scheme. "In 2024 and 2025, American entities connected to Duque engaged in multiple financial transactions, totalling millions of US dollars," the government release stated.

Colombian national Mónica Muñoz Ucros was the final person to be targeted, with the entity she oversaw said to have conducted wire transfers linked to Duque and his operations.

"The US once more urges outside forces to stop giving monetary and weaponry aid to the warring parties," the Treasury announced.

Reaction

Elizabeth Dickinson, senior analyst at the International Crisis Group, described the actions as a "major" development, stating that "identifying the recruiters is the right way to go".

It was also noted that, Bogotá ratified a law approving the anti-mercenary convention, designed to limit its citizens' long history in foreign conflicts and transform national security policy.

A mercenary specialist, an expert on mercenaries, called for greater wariness, stating that "restrictions are needed but not enough for combating rampant mercenarism".

"It’s an illicit economy and based out of the UAE, which is difficult to penalize," he stated. The UAE has been widely accused of supplying weapons to the paramilitary group, claims it rejects. "Expect more Colombian mercenaries," he advised.