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The US government has enforced penalties on a group of several persons and entities accused of enlisting Colombian mercenaries to fight for and train a Sudanese paramilitary group that Washington accuses of genocidal acts.

Network Composition

Announcing the measures on Tuesday, the American treasury stated the network was largely composed of Colombian citizens and firms.

Numerous of ex-soldiers from Colombia have reportedly travelled to the conflict in Sudan to combat beside the Sudanese RSF militia, a faction accused of terrible atrocities including targeted ethnic killings and large-scale abductions.

Emergence of Involvement

The involvement of Colombian fighters was first uncovered last year, following an investigation which found that over three hundred retired troops had been hired to fight – an revelation that prompted an unprecedented apology from Colombia’s foreign ministry.

These South American veterans have historically been seen as some of the most in-demand contractors globally due to their considerable warzone knowledge gleaned from years of internal conflict, training on Western military gear, and high-level combat training.

Reported Actions

In Sudan, the Colombians have allegedly instructed underage fighters, provided drone warfare training, and engaged in frontline combat. A mercenary previously stated that training children was "horrific and irrational" but added that "regrettably, war operates that way".

Sanctioned Individuals

Among those sanctioned was a retired Colombian officer, a individual with dual citizenship and ex-soldier located in the Dubai. The Treasury accused him a pivotal function in hiring and sending former Colombian soldiers to Sudan. His wife, Claudia Viviana Oliveros Forero, was similarly targeted.

Also on the restricted list was Mateo Duque Botero, a dual national who officials alleged ran a firm linked to processing money and salaries for the network. "In 2024 and 2025, companies in the United States associated with Duque conducted several money transfers, amounting to millions," the official announcement noted.

Individual Mónica Muñoz Ucros was the final person to be targeted, with the firm she operated alleged to have wire transfers connected to Duque and his companies.

"The US once more urges foreign parties to halt the flow of financial and military support to the combatants," the department stated.

Expert Analysis

A senior analyst, from a conflict think tank, called the measures as a "highly important" development, saying that "calling out those who are doing the contracting is the right way to go".

It was also noted that, Colombia recently passed a law endorsing the anti-mercenary convention, aiming to curb years of participation by its nationals in foreign conflicts and reshape domestic defense strategy.

Another expert, an expert on mercenaries, advised additional measures, saying that "sanctions are necessary but insufficient for combating rampant mercenarism".

"This is a shadow economy and operating from Dubai, which is relatively sanction-proof," he said. The United Arab Emirates has been widely accused of supplying weapons to the paramilitary group, claims it rejects. "This trend will probably continue," the expert cautioned.