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The United States has enforced penalties on a group of several persons and entities accused of recruiting Colombian mercenaries to combat alongside and instruct a militia force in Sudan that Washington accuses of genocidal acts.

Operation Structure

Revealing the measures on this week, the Treasury stated the operation was largely composed of Colombian citizens and firms.

Hundreds of retired Colombian troops have been recruited to go to the Sudanese warzone to fight alongside the RSF paramilitary group, a faction implicated in terrible atrocities encompassing massacres based on ethnicity and widespread kidnappings.

Discovery of Participation

The involvement of Colombian fighters first came to light the previous year, following an inquiry which disclosed that more than 300 retired troops had been hired to fight – an revelation that prompted an rare mea culpa from officials in Bogotá.

Colombian ex-soldiers have historically been seen as highly prized fighters in conflict zones due to their considerable warzone knowledge acquired during a long-running domestic war, training on Nato equipment, and high-level combat training.

Reported Actions

In Sudan, the Colombians have reportedly trained underage fighters, provided drone warfare training, and fought directly on the frontlines. A mercenary was quoted as saying that instructing minors was "awful and crazy" but noted that "regrettably, war operates that way".

Sanctioned Individuals

Among those sanctioned was a dual national, a dual Colombian-Italian national and retired Colombian military officer based in the United Arab Emirates. The Treasury alleged he played a key part in hiring and sending former Colombian soldiers to Sudan. His spouse, Claudia Oliveros, was similarly targeted.

Also on the restricted list was Mateo Andrés Duque Botero, a dual Colombian-Spanish citizen who officials alleged ran a firm implicated in handling funds and payroll for the recruitment operation. "In 2024 and 2025, US-based firms associated with Duque engaged in numerous wire transfers, amounting to millions," the Treasury statement noted.

Colombian national Mónica Muñoz Ucros was the final person to be sanctioned, with the firm she operated accused of wire transfers associated with Duque and his operations.

"The US once more urges external actors to halt the flow of funding and arms to the combatants," the agency announced.

Reaction

Elizabeth Dickinson, with the International Crisis Group, called the actions as a "very significant" milestone, saying that "calling out those who are doing the contracting is the correct approach".

She added that, the Colombian government ratified a law approving the anti-mercenary convention, seeking to reduce decades of Colombian involvement in foreign conflicts and reshape national security policy.

Sean McFate, a authority on private military contractors, called for greater wariness, noting that "sanctions are necessary but insufficient for dealing with the growing mercenary trade".

"This is a shadow economy and centered in Dubai, which is largely insulated from sanctions," he commented. The United Arab Emirates has been repeatedly implicated of supplying weapons to the paramilitary group, claims it rejects. "More contractors from Colombia are likely," the expert cautioned.