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The United States has levied restrictions on a group of four individuals and four companies charged of hiring former Colombian soldiers to fight for and train a Sudanese paramilitary group which the US alleges of acts of genocide.

Operation Structure

Announcing the measures 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 been recruited to go to the Sudanese warzone to combat beside the Sudanese RSF militia, a group linked to terrible atrocities including targeted ethnic killings and large-scale abductions.

Revelation of Role

The involvement of Colombian fighters initially emerged last year, following an report which found that hundreds of retired troops had been recruited to participate in the war – an discovery that led to an rare mea culpa from Colombia’s foreign ministry.

These South American veterans have historically been seen as some of the most in-demand contractors globally due to their considerable warzone knowledge acquired during a long-running domestic war, training on Western military gear, and elite military instruction.

Role in the Conflict

In the Sudanese theater, the contractors have been accused of teaching minors, provided drone warfare training, and engaged in frontline combat. A mercenary previously stated that instructing minors was "awful and crazy" but noted that "unfortunately that’s how war is".

Targeted Persons

Among those targeted was Álvaro Andrés Quijano Becerra, a individual with dual citizenship and retired Colombian military officer based in the UAE. The Treasury alleged he played a key part in hiring and sending former Colombian soldiers to Sudan. His wife, Claudia Oliveros, was similarly targeted.

Also on the sanctions list was Mateo Duque Botero, a dual Colombian-Spanish citizen who authorities say ran a firm linked to handling funds and payroll for the recruitment operation. "Over the past two years, American entities linked to Duque carried out numerous wire transfers, amounting to millions," the government release said.

Citizen of Colombia Mónica Muñoz was the final person to be penalized, with the entity she oversaw accused of wire transfers linked to Duque and his companies.

"The United States again calls on foreign parties to cease providing monetary and weaponry aid to the combatants," the agency announced.

Reaction

Elizabeth Dickinson, from a conflict think tank, labeled the actions as a "highly important" development, saying that "identifying the recruiters is the correct approach".

She added that, Bogotá ratified a statute ratifying the International Convention Against the Recruitment and Use of Mercenaries, aiming to curb decades of Colombian involvement in overseas wars and change domestic defense strategy.

Another expert, an expert on mercenaries, urged more caution, saying that "restrictions are needed but not enough for combating widespread use of contractors".

"It operates in the black market and operating from the Emirates, which is difficult to penalize," he said. The Emirati government has been frequently alleged of arming the RSF, claims it rejects. "More contractors from Colombia are likely," McFate warned.