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The Washington has imposed sanctions on a operation of four people and four firms alleged of enlisting Colombian mercenaries to combat alongside and instruct a armed faction in Sudan that Washington accuses of acts of genocide.

Operation Structure

Announcing the sanctions on this week, the Treasury stated the network was largely composed of Colombian citizens and firms.

Scores of retired Colombian troops have been recruited to go to the Sudanese warzone to combat beside the RSF paramilitary group, a faction accused of terrible atrocities encompassing ethnically targeted slaughter and widespread kidnappings.

Revelation of Role

The role of these mercenaries initially emerged last year, prompted by an investigation which disclosed that more than 300 former soldiers had been hired to participate in the war – an discovery that prompted an rare mea culpa from the Colombian government.

Former Colombian military have historically been seen as some of the most in-demand contractors globally due to their vast combat experience gleaned from years of internal conflict, knowledge of Western military gear, and high-level combat training.

Role in the Conflict

In Sudan, the mercenaries have been accused of teaching underage fighters, instructed militiamen in drone operation, and engaged in frontline combat. An individual involved was quoted as saying that instructing minors was "terrible and insane" but added that "sadly, that is the nature of conflict".

Sanctioned Individuals

Among those penalized was Álvaro Andrés Quijano Becerra, a dual Colombian-Italian national and retired Colombian military officer located in the UAE. The Treasury alleged he played a key part in enlisting and transporting 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 authorities say oversaw a company implicated in managing finances and payments for the network. "In 2024 and 2025, companies in the United States associated with Duque carried out several money transfers, totalling millions of US dollars," the government release said.

Individual Mónica Muñoz Ucros was the fourth individual to be penalized, with the firm she operated said to have conducted wire transfers linked to Duque and his operations.

"Washington reiterates its demand for foreign parties to cease providing monetary and weaponry aid to the combatants," the Treasury said in a statement.

Reaction

An expert, with the International Crisis Group, described the actions as a "highly important" milestone, stating that "identifying the recruiters is the correct approach".

Furthermore, Colombia has enacted a statute endorsing the global treaty against mercenarism, aiming to curb its citizens' long history in overseas wars and change national security policy.

A mercenary specialist, a scholar on the subject, advised additional measures, stating that "restrictions are needed but not enough for addressing the growing mercenary trade".

"It operates in the black market and centered in the Emirates, which is largely insulated from sanctions," he stated. The Emirati government has been widely accused of arming the RSF, claims it rejects. "More contractors from Colombia are likely," McFate warned.