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The Washington has enforced penalties on a group of four people and four firms charged of recruiting former Colombian soldiers to support and educate a Sudanese paramilitary group that Washington accuses of genocidal acts.

Network Composition

Revealing the sanctions on this week, the Treasury stated the operation was primarily made up of Colombian citizens and firms.

Hundreds of former Colombian military personnel have been recruited to go to the Sudanese warzone to fight alongside the RSF paramilitary group, a faction accused of severe violations including massacres based on ethnicity and large-scale abductions.

Emergence of Involvement

The involvement of Colombian fighters was first uncovered last year, following an inquiry which disclosed that more than 300 former soldiers had been recruited to participate in the war – an revelation that led to an rare mea culpa from officials in Bogotá.

Colombian ex-soldiers have historically been seen as among the world’s most sought-after mercenaries due to their vast combat experience gleaned from decades of civil war, training on Western military gear, and elite military instruction.

Activities in Sudan

In the conflict, the mercenaries have reportedly trained minors, taught fighters to pilot drones, and engaged in frontline combat. An individual involved remarked that working with child soldiers was "awful and crazy" but noted that "regrettably, war operates that way".

Sanctioned Individuals

Among those penalized was a dual national, a individual with dual citizenship and retired Colombian military officer located in the Dubai. The government said he had a key part in enlisting and transporting mercenaries to Sudan. His spouse, Claudia Viviana Oliveros Forero, was also sanctioned.

Also on the sanctions list was Duque Botero, a individual with Colombian and Spanish citizenship who the Treasury stated managed a business linked to handling funds and payroll for the network. "In 2024 and 2025, US-based firms linked to Duque carried out numerous wire transfers, amounting to millions," the Treasury statement said.

Citizen of Colombia Mónica Muñoz was the fourth individual to be penalized, with the entity she oversaw said to have conducted money transfers associated with Duque and his operations.

"The US once more urges external actors to halt the flow of financial and military support to the combatants," the agency announced.

Analyst Commentary

Elizabeth Dickinson, from a conflict think tank, labeled the measures as a "major" development, saying that "calling out those who are doing the contracting is the correct approach".

She added that, the Colombian government recently passed a law endorsing the global treaty against mercenarism, seeking to reduce its citizens' long history in international fights and reshape national security policy.

A mercenary specialist, a scholar on the subject, urged more caution, stating that "penalties are required yet incomplete for addressing rampant mercenarism".

"It’s an illicit economy and centered in the UAE, which is difficult to penalize," he stated. The United Arab Emirates has been frequently alleged of supplying weapons to the paramilitary group, allegations it disputes. "This trend will probably continue," the expert cautioned.