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The United States has levied restrictions on a group of four individuals and four companies alleged of hiring South American contractors to support and educate a militia force in Sudan that Washington accuses of committing genocide.

Group Makeup

Disclosing the sanctions on Tuesday, the Treasury stated the scheme was largely composed of Colombian nationals and companies.

Numerous of former Colombian military personnel have been recruited to go to the Sudanese warzone to operate with the Sudanese RSF militia, a faction linked to terrible atrocities encompassing ethnically targeted slaughter and mass abductions.

Revelation of Role

The participation of ex-soldiers was first uncovered in 2024, following an inquiry which revealed that more than 300 retired troops had been contracted to participate in the war – an discovery that resulted in an unprecedented apology from Colombia’s foreign ministry.

Former Colombian military have historically been seen as some of the most in-demand contractors globally due to their considerable warzone knowledge resulting from years of internal conflict, familiarity with advanced weaponry, and high-level combat training.

Activities in Sudan

In Sudan, the Colombians have reportedly trained underage fighters, taught fighters to pilot drones, and fought directly on the frontlines. An individual involved previously stated that instructing minors was "terrible and insane" but commented that "sadly, that is the nature of conflict".

Sanctioned Individuals

Among those sanctioned was Álvaro Andrés Quijano Becerra, a individual with dual citizenship and retired Colombian military officer located in the Dubai. The government accused him a pivotal function in recruiting and deploying ex-military personnel to Sudan. His wife, Claudia Viviana Oliveros Forero, was also sanctioned.

Also on the restricted list was Duque Botero, a dual Colombian-Spanish citizen who officials alleged managed a business linked to managing finances and payments for the scheme. "Recently, companies in the United States connected to Duque carried out several money transfers, totalling millions of US dollars," the official announcement said.

Colombian national Mónica Muñoz Ucros was the final person to be sanctioned, with the company she managed accused of financial transactions linked to Duque and his companies.

"The United States again calls on foreign parties to cease providing financial and military support to the combatants," the Treasury said in a statement.

Expert Analysis

Elizabeth Dickinson, senior analyst at the International Crisis Group, described the actions as a "major" step, saying that "identifying the recruiters is the correct approach".

She added that, the Colombian government has enacted a law ratifying the anti-mercenary convention, aiming to curb its citizens' long history in international fights and transform domestic defense strategy.

A mercenary specialist, an expert on mercenaries, called for greater wariness, saying that "restrictions are needed but not enough for addressing widespread use of contractors".

"This is a shadow economy and based out of the Emirates, which is largely insulated from sanctions," he said. The Emirati government has been frequently alleged of supplying weapons to the paramilitary group, claims it rejects. "More contractors from Colombia are likely," McFate warned.