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The United States has levied restrictions on a group of four individuals and four companies charged of enlisting former Colombian soldiers to support and educate a Sudanese paramilitary group that Washington accuses of acts of genocide.

Group Makeup

Revealing the sanctions on Tuesday, the US Treasury Department stated the scheme was largely composed of individuals and businesses from Colombia.

Hundreds of ex-soldiers from Colombia have reportedly travelled to the Sudanese warzone to fight alongside the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a group implicated in horrific war crimes encompassing ethnically targeted slaughter and widespread kidnappings.

Emergence of Involvement

The participation of ex-soldiers was first uncovered last year, after an investigation which found that over three hundred retired troops had been recruited to participate in the war – an discovery that led to an unprecedented apology from the Colombian government.

These South American veterans have widely regarded as some of the most in-demand contractors globally due to their considerable warzone knowledge acquired during a long-running domestic war, familiarity with advanced weaponry, and superior tactical education.

Reported Actions

In Sudan, the mercenaries have reportedly trained underage fighters, instructed militiamen in drone operation, and fought directly on the frontlines. An individual involved remarked that instructing minors was "awful and crazy" but added that "regrettably, war operates that way".

Targeted Persons

Among those sanctioned was Álvaro Andrés Quijano Becerra, a dual Colombian-Italian national and former army officer located in the Dubai. The government accused him a key part in enlisting and transporting ex-military personnel to Sudan. His wife, Claudia Viviana Oliveros Forero, was penalized as well.

Also on the sanctions list was Mateo Duque Botero, a individual with Colombian and Spanish citizenship who the Treasury stated managed a business linked to handling funds and payroll for the scheme. "In 2024 and 2025, American entities associated with Duque carried out numerous wire transfers, totalling millions of US dollars," the official announcement stated.

Citizen of Colombia Mónica Muñoz was the final person to be penalized, with the firm she operated said to have conducted wire transfers linked to Duque and his companies.

"Washington reiterates its demand for outside forces to cease providing funding and arms to the combatants," the agency said in a statement.

Analyst Commentary

Elizabeth Dickinson, senior analyst at the International Crisis Group, labeled the sanctions as a "very significant" development, stating that "targeting the enablers is the correct approach".

Furthermore, Colombia recently passed a law endorsing the International Convention Against the Recruitment and Use of Mercenaries, seeking to reduce years of participation by its nationals in international fights and transform national security policy.

A mercenary specialist, a scholar on the subject, urged more caution, saying that "sanctions are necessary but insufficient for dealing with rampant mercenarism".

"It operates in the black market and centered in Dubai, which is difficult to penalize," he commented. The United Arab Emirates has been widely accused of providing arms to the militia, an accusation it has denied. "More contractors from Colombia are likely," the expert cautioned.