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The United States has levied restrictions on a group of several persons and entities charged of hiring former Colombian soldiers to support and educate a armed faction in Sudan the United States claims of acts of genocide.

Network Composition

Disclosing the sanctions on this week, the American treasury stated the scheme was largely composed of Colombian nationals and companies.

Numerous of ex-soldiers from Colombia have been recruited to go to the Sudanese warzone to operate with the Sudanese RSF militia, a force linked to terrible atrocities encompassing massacres based on ethnicity and mass abductions.

Discovery of Participation

The participation of ex-soldiers was first uncovered in 2024, prompted by an inquiry which disclosed that over three hundred former soldiers had been hired to participate in the war – an event that led to an unprecedented apology from officials in Bogotá.

Former Colombian military have long been considered as some of the most in-demand contractors globally due to their vast combat experience acquired during decades of civil war, knowledge of Western military gear, and high-level combat training.

Reported Actions

In the conflict, the Colombians have reportedly trained minors, provided drone warfare training, and engaged in frontline combat. A mercenary previously stated that instructing minors was "awful and crazy" but noted that "sadly, that is the nature of conflict".

Named Entities

Among those penalized was Álvaro Andrés Quijano Becerra, a dual Colombian-Italian national and retired Colombian military officer based in the United Arab Emirates. The government alleged he played a pivotal function in hiring and sending ex-military personnel to Sudan. His spouse, Claudia Oliveros, was similarly targeted.

Also on the restricted list was Mateo Duque Botero, a dual national who the Treasury stated oversaw a company accused of handling funds and payroll for the scheme. "In 2024 and 2025, companies in the United States connected to Duque conducted several money transfers, totalling millions of US dollars," the government release stated.

Citizen of Colombia Mónica Muñoz was the final person to be penalized, with the firm she operated said to have conducted wire transfers associated with Duque and his operations.

"The United States again calls on outside forces to cease providing monetary and weaponry aid to the combatants," the department announced.

Expert Analysis

An expert, with the International Crisis Group, called the sanctions as a "major" step, noting that "targeting the enablers is the correct approach".

Furthermore, Bogotá recently passed a piece of legislation approving the International Convention Against the Recruitment and Use of Mercenaries, designed to limit its citizens' long history in foreign conflicts and reshape national security policy.

Sean McFate, a scholar on the subject, called for greater wariness, saying that "sanctions are necessary but insufficient for combating widespread use of contractors".

"It’s an illicit economy and centered in the UAE, which is difficult to penalize," he commented. The United Arab Emirates has been repeatedly implicated of supplying weapons to the paramilitary group, claims it rejects. "Expect more Colombian mercenaries," he advised.