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The Washington has levied restrictions on a operation of four people and four firms alleged of recruiting former Colombian soldiers to combat alongside and instruct a Sudanese paramilitary group that Washington accuses of acts of genocide.

Network Composition

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

Numerous of former Colombian military personnel have reportedly travelled to the conflict in Sudan to operate with the RSF paramilitary group, a force linked to severe violations including massacres based on ethnicity and widespread kidnappings.

Discovery of Participation

The role of these mercenaries initially emerged the previous year, after an inquiry which revealed that hundreds of retired troops had been contracted to participate in the war – an discovery that resulted in an rare mea culpa from the Colombian government.

These South American veterans have historically been seen as some of the most in-demand contractors globally due to their extensive battlefield experience resulting from decades of civil war, knowledge of advanced weaponry, and high-level combat training.

Role in the Conflict

In the conflict, the contractors have reportedly trained minors, taught fighters to pilot drones, and fought directly on the frontlines. A mercenary was quoted as saying that working with child soldiers was "horrific and irrational" but added that "sadly, that is the nature of conflict".

Sanctioned Individuals

Among those penalized was Álvaro Andrés Quijano Becerra, a individual with dual citizenship and retired Colombian military officer located in the UAE. The Treasury said he had a key part in recruiting and deploying mercenaries to Sudan. His spouse, Claudia Oliveros, was also sanctioned.

Also on the penalty list was Duque Botero, a dual Colombian-Spanish citizen who authorities say ran a firm accused of managing finances and payments for the scheme. "In 2024 and 2025, companies in the United States linked to Duque engaged in several money transfers, totalling millions of US dollars," the official announcement noted.

Citizen of Colombia Mónica Muñoz was the other individual to be targeted, with the company she managed said to have conducted money transfers connected to Duque and his operations.

"The US once more urges external actors to stop giving monetary and weaponry aid to the combatants," the agency said in a statement.

Reaction

Elizabeth Dickinson, with the International Crisis Group, labeled the actions as a "highly important" step, stating that "identifying the recruiters is the right way to go".

Furthermore, Colombia has enacted a law approving the anti-mercenary convention, designed to limit decades of Colombian involvement in foreign conflicts and transform domestic defense strategy.

Another expert, a scholar on the subject, advised additional measures, stating that "sanctions are necessary but insufficient for addressing the growing mercenary trade".

"It’s an illicit economy and based out of Dubai, which is difficult to penalize," he stated. The United Arab Emirates has been frequently alleged of supplying weapons to the paramilitary group, an accusation it has denied. "More contractors from Colombia are likely," he advised.