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The United States has levied restrictions on a network of several persons and entities charged of hiring Colombian mercenaries to support and educate a militia force in Sudan the United States claims of genocidal acts.

Network Composition

Disclosing the sanctions on Tuesday, the American treasury stated the operation was mostly comprised of Colombian nationals and companies.

Hundreds of retired Colombian troops have been recruited to go to Sudan to combat beside the RSF paramilitary group, a faction implicated in terrible atrocities such as ethnically targeted slaughter and widespread kidnappings.

Discovery of Participation

The role of these mercenaries was first uncovered last year, following an investigation which found that hundreds of ex-military personnel had been recruited to fight – an revelation that resulted in an unusual statement of regret from Colombia’s foreign ministry.

Former Colombian military have long been considered as some of the most in-demand contractors globally due to their vast combat experience resulting from decades of civil war, training on advanced weaponry, and elite military instruction.

Role in the Conflict

In Sudan, the Colombians have allegedly instructed underage fighters, taught fighters to pilot drones, and engaged in frontline combat. An individual involved remarked that working with child soldiers was "horrific and irrational" but noted that "regrettably, war operates that way".

Named Entities

Among those sanctioned was Álvaro Andrés Quijano Becerra, a citizen of both Colombia and Italy and former army officer operating from the Dubai. The Treasury said he had a central role in hiring and sending former Colombian soldiers to Sudan. His wife, Claudia Viviana Oliveros Forero, was similarly targeted.

Also on the sanctions list was Mateo Andrés Duque Botero, a individual with Colombian and Spanish citizenship who officials alleged ran a firm accused of processing money and salaries for the recruitment operation. "Over the past two years, American entities linked to Duque conducted multiple financial transactions, amounting to millions," the official announcement noted.

Citizen of Colombia Mónica Muñoz Ucros was the other individual to be penalized, with the entity she oversaw said to have conducted wire transfers associated with Duque and his operations.

"The United States again calls on foreign parties to stop giving financial and military support to the belligerents," the department announced.

Reaction

Elizabeth Dickinson, from a conflict think tank, labeled the sanctions as a "highly important" milestone, saying that "calling out those who are doing the contracting is the right way to go".

She added that, the Colombian government recently passed a piece of legislation approving the International Convention Against the Recruitment and Use of Mercenaries, designed to limit years of participation by its nationals in international fights and reshape domestic defense strategy.

Another expert, a scholar on the subject, urged more caution, stating that "restrictions are needed but not enough for combating the growing mercenary trade".

"It operates in the black market and centered in the UAE, which is largely insulated from sanctions," he commented. The United Arab Emirates has been repeatedly implicated of providing arms to the militia, an accusation it has denied. "Expect more Colombian mercenaries," the expert cautioned.