Washington Levies Penalties on Operation Alleged of Recruiting Colombian Mercenaries to Sudan.

The Washington has enforced penalties on a operation of several persons and entities accused of recruiting South American contractors to combat alongside and instruct a militia force in Sudan that Washington accuses of committing genocide.

Operation Structure

Revealing the measures on this week, the Treasury stated the scheme was mostly comprised of individuals and businesses from Colombia.

Scores of former Colombian military personnel have been recruited to go to the conflict in Sudan to fight alongside the Sudanese RSF militia, a force linked to horrific war crimes including massacres based on ethnicity and mass abductions.

Discovery of Participation

The role of these mercenaries first came to light in 2024, prompted by an investigation which found that more than 300 former soldiers had been recruited to engage in combat – an event that led to an unprecedented apology from the Colombian government.

Colombian ex-soldiers have long been considered as among the world’s most sought-after mercenaries due to their extensive battlefield experience resulting from decades of civil war, training on Western military gear, and high-level combat training.

Role in the Conflict

In Sudan, the mercenaries have allegedly instructed underage fighters, taught fighters to pilot drones, and participated in direct battles. One source remarked that working with child soldiers was "terrible and insane" but added that "sadly, that is the nature of conflict".

Targeted Persons

Among those sanctioned was Álvaro Andrés Quijano Becerra, a citizen of both Colombia and Italy and ex-soldier located in the Dubai. The Treasury said he had a key part in enlisting and transporting mercenaries to Sudan. His spouse, Claudia Viviana Oliveros Forero, was penalized as well.

Also on the penalty list was Mateo Andrés Duque Botero, a dual Colombian-Spanish citizen who authorities say oversaw a company linked to handling funds and payroll for the scheme. "Over the past two years, US-based firms connected to Duque conducted multiple financial transactions, totalling millions of US dollars," the official announcement noted.

Individual Mónica Muñoz was the final person to be targeted, with the entity she oversaw accused of financial transactions associated with Duque and his businesses.

"The United States again calls on external actors to stop giving funding and arms to the warring parties," the Treasury stated.

Expert Analysis

Elizabeth Dickinson, senior analyst at the International Crisis Group, described the sanctions as a "major" milestone, saying that "identifying the recruiters is the proper strategy".

She added that, Colombia recently passed a statute ratifying the global treaty against mercenarism, aiming to curb its citizens' long history in international fights and change its security approach.

Another expert, a scholar on the subject, advised additional measures, saying that "sanctions are necessary but insufficient for addressing rampant mercenarism".

"This is a shadow economy and based out of the UAE, which is relatively sanction-proof," he said. The United Arab Emirates has been repeatedly implicated of arming the RSF, claims it rejects. "This trend will probably continue," McFate warned.