🔗 Share this article

The United States has imposed sanctions on a operation of four people and four firms alleged of hiring Colombian mercenaries to support and educate a militia force in Sudan which the US alleges of acts of genocide.

Group Makeup

Revealing the measures on this week, the US Treasury Department stated the operation was primarily made up of Colombian citizens and firms.

Hundreds of retired Colombian troops have been recruited to go to the Sudanese warzone to fight alongside the RSF paramilitary group, a force linked to severe violations encompassing ethnically targeted slaughter and large-scale abductions.

Discovery of Participation

The involvement of Colombian fighters was first uncovered the previous year, following an investigation which disclosed that over three hundred ex-military personnel had been hired to participate in the war – an revelation that resulted in an unprecedented apology 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 decades of civil war, familiarity with Western military gear, and high-level combat training.

Activities in Sudan

In the Sudanese theater, the mercenaries have been accused of teaching underage fighters, taught fighters to pilot drones, and engaged in frontline combat. One source previously stated that instructing minors was "terrible and insane" but added that "unfortunately that’s how war is".

Sanctioned Individuals

Among those targeted was a retired Colombian officer, a individual with dual citizenship and ex-soldier operating from the United Arab Emirates. The government accused him a central role in enlisting and transporting former Colombian soldiers to Sudan. His spouse, Claudia Oliveros, was penalized as well.

Also on the sanctions list was Duque Botero, a dual Colombian-Spanish citizen who authorities say ran a firm accused of managing finances and payments for the recruitment operation. "Recently, American entities linked to Duque carried out multiple financial transactions, worth millions," the official announcement said.

Colombian national Mónica Muñoz Ucros was the fourth individual to be penalized, with the company she managed alleged to have money transfers linked to Duque and his companies.

"The United States again calls on outside forces to halt the flow of monetary and weaponry aid to the belligerents," the Treasury stated.

Expert Analysis

An expert, from a conflict think tank, labeled the measures as a "very significant" step, noting that "calling out those who are doing the contracting is the correct approach".

It was also noted that, Bogotá has enacted a law approving the anti-mercenary convention, seeking to reduce its citizens' long history in international fights and transform domestic defense strategy.

Another expert, a scholar on the subject, called for greater wariness, saying that "penalties are required yet incomplete for dealing with rampant mercenarism".

"This is a shadow economy and centered in the Emirates, which is difficult to penalize," he stated. The United Arab Emirates has been frequently alleged of supplying weapons to the paramilitary group, claims it rejects. "This trend will probably continue," McFate warned.