🔗 Share this article

The United States has enforced penalties on a operation of four individuals and four companies alleged of hiring former Colombian soldiers to combat alongside and instruct a militia force in Sudan which the US alleges of acts of genocide.

Network Composition

Revealing the sanctions on this week, the US Treasury Department stated the network was mostly comprised of individuals and businesses from Colombia.

Numerous of ex-soldiers from Colombia have been recruited to go to the conflict in Sudan to operate with the RSF paramilitary group, a force implicated in severe violations such as targeted ethnic killings and large-scale abductions.

Discovery of Participation

The involvement of Colombian fighters first came to light last year, after an report which found that over three hundred former soldiers had been contracted to participate in the war – an event that led to an unprecedented apology from officials in Bogotá.

Colombian ex-soldiers have long been considered as some of the most in-demand contractors globally due to their extensive battlefield experience acquired during a long-running domestic war, knowledge of advanced weaponry, and high-level combat training.

Role in the Conflict

In Sudan, the mercenaries have reportedly trained minors, provided drone warfare training, and fought directly on the frontlines. A mercenary previously stated that working with child soldiers was "terrible and insane" but added that "regrettably, war operates that way".

Sanctioned Individuals

Among those targeted was a retired Colombian officer, a citizen of both Colombia and Italy and former army officer based in the Dubai. The US authorities alleged he played a pivotal function in recruiting and deploying ex-military personnel to Sudan. His spouse, Claudia Oliveros, was similarly targeted.

Also on the penalty list was Duque Botero, a individual with Colombian and Spanish citizenship who the Treasury stated oversaw a company accused of processing money and salaries for the recruitment operation. "Recently, US-based firms connected to Duque carried out multiple financial transactions, totalling millions of US dollars," the official announcement said.

Colombian national Mónica Muñoz Ucros was the fourth individual to be sanctioned, with the firm she operated alleged to have wire transfers linked to Duque and his companies.

"Washington reiterates its demand for outside forces to stop giving financial and military support to the warring parties," the Treasury stated.

Analyst Commentary

An expert, with the International Crisis Group, described the measures as a "very significant" milestone, stating that "calling out those who are doing the contracting is the proper strategy".

Furthermore, Colombia recently passed a statute ratifying the global treaty against mercenarism, aiming to curb its citizens' long history in foreign conflicts and transform national security policy.

Another expert, a scholar on the subject, urged more caution, noting that "penalties are required yet incomplete for dealing with widespread use of contractors".

"It operates in the black market and operating from the Emirates, which is largely insulated from sanctions," he said. The United Arab Emirates has been repeatedly implicated of arming the RSF, allegations it disputes. "Expect more Colombian mercenaries," the expert cautioned.