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The Washington has imposed sanctions on a network of four people and four firms charged of hiring South American contractors to support and educate a armed faction in Sudan which the US alleges of acts of genocide.

Group Makeup

Announcing the sanctions on Tuesday, the US Treasury Department stated the network was largely composed of Colombian citizens and firms.

Scores of former Colombian military personnel have allegedly journeyed to Sudan to operate with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a group implicated in severe violations such as targeted ethnic killings and large-scale abductions.

Revelation of Role

The participation of ex-soldiers initially emerged last year, prompted by an investigation which found that hundreds of retired troops had been contracted to participate in the war – an revelation that led to an rare mea culpa from Colombia’s foreign ministry.

Colombian ex-soldiers have historically been seen as among the world’s most sought-after mercenaries due to their considerable warzone knowledge resulting from a long-running domestic war, familiarity with Nato equipment, and elite military instruction.

Activities in Sudan

In Sudan, the Colombians have reportedly trained underage fighters, taught fighters to pilot drones, and participated in direct battles. A mercenary was quoted as saying that working with child soldiers was "terrible and insane" but added that "regrettably, war operates that way".

Named Entities

Among those penalized was a dual national, a citizen of both Colombia and Italy and former army officer based in the United Arab Emirates. The Treasury said he had a central role in enlisting and transporting mercenaries to Sudan. His wife, Claudia Oliveros, was also sanctioned.

Also on the sanctions list was Mateo Duque Botero, a dual Colombian-Spanish citizen who the Treasury stated oversaw a company implicated in processing money and salaries for the network. "In 2024 and 2025, American entities linked to Duque conducted several money transfers, totalling millions of US dollars," the government release said.

Citizen of Colombia Mónica Muñoz Ucros was the final person to be targeted, with the company she managed said to have conducted wire transfers connected to Duque and his businesses.

"Washington reiterates its demand for external actors to cease providing financial and military support to the warring parties," the agency announced.

Analyst Commentary

Elizabeth Dickinson, from a conflict think tank, called the actions as a "major" milestone, stating that "calling out those who are doing the contracting is the correct approach".

She added that, Bogotá recently passed a law approving the anti-mercenary convention, seeking to reduce years of participation by its nationals in foreign conflicts and transform its security approach.

A mercenary specialist, a scholar on the subject, advised additional measures, noting that "sanctions are necessary but insufficient for combating the growing mercenary trade".

"It operates in the black market and based out of Dubai, which is largely insulated from sanctions," he commented. The Emirati government has been repeatedly implicated of supplying weapons to the paramilitary group, an accusation it has denied. "This trend will probably continue," he advised.