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The Washington has enforced penalties on a group of several persons and entities charged of recruiting Colombian mercenaries to combat alongside and instruct a Sudanese paramilitary group which the US alleges of committing genocide.

Operation Structure

Revealing the sanctions on Tuesday, the Treasury stated the network was mostly comprised of individuals and businesses from Colombia.

Numerous of retired Colombian troops have reportedly travelled to the Sudanese warzone to combat beside the Sudanese RSF militia, a force implicated in terrible atrocities including ethnically targeted slaughter and large-scale abductions.

Revelation of Role

The role of these mercenaries first came to light in 2024, following an investigation which disclosed that over three hundred retired troops had been recruited to fight – an revelation that led to an rare mea culpa from officials in Bogotá.

Colombian ex-soldiers have widely regarded as some of the most in-demand contractors globally due to their vast combat experience resulting from a long-running domestic war, knowledge of Nato equipment, and high-level combat training.

Role in the Conflict

In the conflict, the Colombians have been accused of teaching minors, provided drone warfare training, and engaged in frontline combat. An individual involved was quoted as saying that instructing minors was "terrible and insane" but commented that "sadly, that is the nature of conflict".

Named Entities

Among those sanctioned was Álvaro Andrés Quijano Becerra, a citizen of both Colombia and Italy and retired Colombian military officer operating from the Dubai. The US authorities alleged he played a central role in hiring and sending former Colombian soldiers to Sudan. His wife, Claudia Oliveros, was similarly targeted.

Also on the penalty list was Mateo Duque Botero, a dual national who authorities say managed a business linked to managing finances and payments for the network. "In 2024 and 2025, companies in the United States associated with Duque carried out numerous wire transfers, totalling millions of US dollars," the official announcement stated.

Citizen of Colombia Mónica Muñoz was the other individual to be sanctioned, with the company she managed accused of financial transactions linked to Duque and his businesses.

"Washington reiterates its demand for outside forces to halt the flow of funding and arms to the belligerents," the Treasury said in a statement.

Reaction

A senior analyst, with the International Crisis Group, labeled the sanctions as a "very significant" development, stating that "targeting the enablers is the right way to go".

It was also noted that, the Colombian government ratified a statute ratifying the global treaty against mercenarism, aiming to curb years of participation by its nationals in international fights and reshape its security approach.

A mercenary specialist, a scholar on the subject, advised additional measures, saying that "restrictions are needed but not enough for combating widespread use of contractors".

"It’s an illicit economy and operating from Dubai, which is difficult to penalize," he stated. The United Arab Emirates has been widely accused of arming the RSF, allegations it disputes. "Expect more Colombian mercenaries," he advised.