🔗 Share this article

The United States has levied restrictions on a group of four individuals and four companies alleged of hiring South American contractors to combat alongside and instruct a armed faction in Sudan which the US alleges of acts of genocide.

Group Makeup

Announcing the sanctions on Tuesday, the Treasury stated the network was mostly comprised of Colombian nationals and companies.

Numerous of ex-soldiers from Colombia have allegedly journeyed to the conflict in Sudan to combat beside the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a group linked to horrific war crimes encompassing ethnically targeted slaughter and large-scale abductions.

Emergence of Involvement

The participation of ex-soldiers initially emerged in 2024, following an report which found that over three hundred ex-military personnel had been recruited to engage in combat – an revelation that led to an rare mea culpa from Colombia’s foreign ministry.

Former Colombian military have long been considered as highly prized fighters in conflict zones due to their considerable warzone knowledge gleaned from years of internal conflict, familiarity with advanced weaponry, and superior tactical education.

Reported Actions

In the Sudanese theater, the contractors have reportedly trained underage fighters, provided drone warfare training, and engaged in frontline combat. An individual involved was quoted as saying that instructing minors was "awful and crazy" but added that "unfortunately that’s how war is".

Sanctioned Individuals

Among those penalized was a retired Colombian officer, a citizen of both Colombia and Italy and former army officer operating from the Dubai. The government accused him a key part in enlisting and transporting former Colombian soldiers to Sudan. His wife, Claudia Viviana Oliveros Forero, was similarly targeted.

Also on the sanctions list was Duque Botero, a individual with Colombian and Spanish citizenship who the Treasury stated managed a business implicated in processing money and salaries for the scheme. "Over the past two years, companies in the United States associated with Duque engaged in multiple financial transactions, worth millions," the Treasury statement noted.

Citizen of Colombia Mónica Muñoz was the fourth individual to be penalized, with the entity she oversaw said to have conducted wire transfers connected to Duque and his businesses.

"Washington reiterates its demand for outside forces to halt the flow of financial and military support to the combatants," the Treasury said in a statement.

Expert Analysis

A senior analyst, with the International Crisis Group, labeled the sanctions as a "major" milestone, noting that "targeting the enablers is the proper strategy".

Furthermore, Colombia ratified a law endorsing the global treaty against mercenarism, aiming to curb years of participation by its nationals in overseas wars and change its security approach.

Another expert, a scholar on the subject, called for greater wariness, noting that "restrictions are needed but not enough for addressing widespread use of contractors".

"It operates in the black market and based out of Dubai, which is difficult to penalize," he commented. The Emirati government has been frequently alleged of arming the RSF, an accusation it has denied. "This trend will probably continue," McFate warned.