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The United States has enforced penalties on a group of four people and four firms charged of enlisting former Colombian soldiers to fight for and train a militia force in Sudan that Washington accuses of acts of genocide.

Operation Structure

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

Scores of ex-soldiers from Colombia have reportedly travelled to the Sudanese warzone to fight alongside the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a group accused of severe violations including ethnically targeted slaughter and mass abductions.

Revelation of Role

The participation of ex-soldiers first came to light last year, following an inquiry which found that more than 300 ex-military personnel had been recruited to fight – an discovery that resulted in an rare mea culpa from officials in Bogotá.

These South American veterans have long been considered as some of the most in-demand contractors globally due to their extensive battlefield experience resulting from decades of civil war, training on advanced weaponry, and superior tactical education.

Activities in Sudan

In the Sudanese theater, the contractors have been accused of teaching minors, taught fighters to pilot drones, and fought directly on the frontlines. One source remarked that instructing minors was "terrible and insane" but added that "sadly, that is the nature of conflict".

Named Entities

Among those sanctioned was Álvaro Andrés Quijano Becerra, a citizen of both Colombia and Italy and ex-soldier located in the UAE. The US authorities alleged he played a key part in recruiting and deploying ex-military personnel to Sudan. His spouse, Claudia Viviana Oliveros Forero, was also sanctioned.

Also on the sanctions list was Mateo Duque Botero, a dual Colombian-Spanish citizen who authorities say managed a business implicated in handling funds and payroll for the network. "In 2024 and 2025, American entities connected to Duque carried out multiple financial transactions, amounting to millions," the official announcement stated.

Individual Mónica Muñoz was the final person to be targeted, with the entity she oversaw said to have conducted money transfers associated with Duque and his companies.

"The United States again calls on outside forces to halt the flow of monetary and weaponry aid to the belligerents," the department announced.

Expert Analysis

A senior analyst, with the International Crisis Group, called the measures as a "major" step, stating that "targeting the enablers is the proper strategy".

Furthermore, the Colombian government recently passed a piece of legislation approving the International Convention Against the Recruitment and Use of Mercenaries, aiming to curb years of participation by its nationals in overseas wars and change domestic defense strategy.

A mercenary specialist, a scholar on the subject, called for greater wariness, saying that "penalties are required yet incomplete for addressing widespread use of contractors".

"It operates in the black market and centered in the Emirates, which is largely insulated from sanctions," he commented. The United Arab Emirates has been repeatedly implicated of arming the RSF, claims it rejects. "Expect more Colombian mercenaries," the expert cautioned.