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The United States has enforced penalties on a group of four individuals and four companies charged of recruiting former Colombian soldiers to support and educate a militia force in Sudan that Washington accuses of acts of genocide.

Network Composition

Announcing the sanctions on Tuesday, the American treasury stated the network was largely composed of individuals and businesses from Colombia.

Hundreds of retired Colombian troops have been recruited to go to the conflict in Sudan to operate with the RSF paramilitary group, a faction accused of terrible atrocities including massacres based on ethnicity and widespread kidnappings.

Discovery of Participation

The participation of ex-soldiers first came to light the previous year, following an report which found that hundreds of former soldiers had been contracted to fight – an discovery that resulted in an unusual statement of regret from officials in Bogotá.

These South American veterans have historically been seen as some of the most in-demand contractors globally due to their vast combat experience gleaned from a long-running domestic war, training on Nato equipment, and high-level combat training.

Role in the Conflict

In the conflict, the mercenaries have been accused of teaching minors, provided drone warfare training, and fought directly on the frontlines. An individual involved remarked that instructing minors was "terrible and insane" but added that "regrettably, war operates that way".

Named Entities

Among those targeted was a dual national, a individual with dual citizenship and retired Colombian military officer located in the United Arab Emirates. The Treasury accused him 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 restricted list was Mateo Duque Botero, a individual with Colombian and Spanish citizenship who the Treasury stated managed a business accused of processing money and salaries for the recruitment operation. "In 2024 and 2025, American entities connected to Duque carried out numerous wire transfers, worth millions," the official announcement noted.

Citizen of Colombia Mónica Muñoz was the final person to be sanctioned, with the entity she oversaw alleged to have financial transactions connected to Duque and his companies.

"The United States again calls on foreign parties to stop giving monetary and weaponry aid to the combatants," the agency stated.

Expert Analysis

An expert, with the International Crisis Group, described the actions as a "highly important" development, noting that "identifying the recruiters is the correct approach".

It was also noted that, Colombia recently passed a piece of legislation endorsing the global treaty against mercenarism, designed to limit years of participation by its nationals in overseas wars and change national security policy.

Another expert, an expert on mercenaries, urged more caution, stating that "penalties are required yet incomplete for combating rampant mercenarism".

"It operates in the black market and based out of the UAE, which is largely insulated from sanctions," he commented. The Emirati government has been widely accused of supplying weapons to the paramilitary group, allegations it disputes. "Expect more Colombian mercenaries," he advised.