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The Washington has enforced penalties on a group of several persons and entities charged of enlisting former Colombian soldiers to fight for and train a Sudanese paramilitary group the United States claims of genocidal acts.

Network Composition

Revealing the restrictions on this week, the Treasury stated the network was largely composed of individuals and businesses from Colombia.

Hundreds of retired Colombian troops have been recruited to go to Sudan to fight alongside the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a group linked to horrific war crimes such as ethnically targeted slaughter and widespread kidnappings.

Emergence of Involvement

The involvement of Colombian fighters first came to light the previous year, prompted by an investigation which found that over three hundred former soldiers had been hired to engage in combat – an event that prompted an unusual statement of regret from officials in Bogotá.

Former Colombian military have long been considered as some of the most in-demand contractors globally due to their vast combat experience resulting from a long-running domestic war, knowledge of Western military gear, and elite military instruction.

Activities in Sudan

In the Sudanese theater, the mercenaries have been accused of teaching underage fighters, taught fighters to pilot drones, and fought directly on the frontlines. A mercenary previously stated that training children was "terrible and insane" but added that "unfortunately that’s how war is".

Sanctioned Individuals

Among those penalized was a retired Colombian officer, a individual with dual citizenship and retired Colombian military officer based in the Dubai. The Treasury said he had a central role in enlisting and transporting ex-military personnel to Sudan. His spouse, Claudia Viviana Oliveros Forero, was penalized as well.

Also on the penalty list was Mateo Duque Botero, a individual with Colombian and Spanish citizenship who the Treasury stated ran a firm accused of handling funds and payroll for the recruitment operation. "In 2024 and 2025, American entities associated with Duque engaged in multiple financial transactions, totalling millions of US dollars," the Treasury statement noted.

Individual Mónica Muñoz was the final person to be sanctioned, with the firm she operated accused of financial transactions connected to Duque and his operations.

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

Analyst Commentary

A senior analyst, senior analyst at the International Crisis Group, called the sanctions as a "very significant" milestone, saying that "calling out those who are doing the contracting is the correct approach".

Furthermore, Colombia has enacted a law ratifying the anti-mercenary convention, designed to limit its citizens' long history in foreign conflicts and reshape domestic defense strategy.

Another expert, a scholar on the subject, called for greater wariness, noting that "penalties are required yet incomplete for dealing with rampant mercenarism".

"It’s an illicit economy and based out of Dubai, which is difficult to penalize," he stated. The United Arab Emirates has been frequently alleged of providing arms to the militia, claims it rejects. "Expect more Colombian mercenaries," the expert cautioned.