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The Washington has levied restrictions on a network of four individuals and four companies charged of enlisting former Colombian soldiers to fight for and train a armed faction in Sudan which the US alleges of acts of genocide.

Network Composition

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

Scores of retired Colombian troops have allegedly journeyed to the conflict in Sudan to operate with the Sudanese RSF militia, a faction implicated in severe violations encompassing massacres based on ethnicity and widespread kidnappings.

Emergence of Involvement

The role of these mercenaries was first uncovered last year, prompted by an inquiry which revealed that hundreds of ex-military personnel had been contracted to fight – an event that prompted an unprecedented apology from the Colombian government.

Colombian ex-soldiers have long been considered as some of the most in-demand contractors globally due to their considerable warzone knowledge gleaned from a long-running domestic war, knowledge of advanced weaponry, and high-level combat training.

Role in the Conflict

In the Sudanese theater, the contractors have allegedly instructed underage fighters, provided drone warfare training, and participated in direct battles. A mercenary remarked that working with child soldiers was "terrible and insane" but added that "unfortunately that’s how war is".

Targeted Persons

Among those sanctioned was Álvaro Andrés Quijano Becerra, a citizen of both Colombia and Italy and ex-soldier based in the UAE. The Treasury alleged he played a pivotal function in enlisting and transporting mercenaries to Sudan. His spouse, Claudia Oliveros, was also sanctioned.

Also on the sanctions list was Mateo Duque Botero, a dual Colombian-Spanish citizen who the Treasury stated ran a firm linked to handling funds and payroll for the network. "Over the past two years, American entities connected to Duque conducted several money transfers, worth millions," the Treasury statement stated.

Individual Mónica Muñoz was the other individual to be sanctioned, with the firm she operated alleged to have financial transactions connected to Duque and his companies.

"The United States again calls on outside forces to halt the flow of funding and arms to the warring parties," the agency stated.

Expert Analysis

Elizabeth Dickinson, senior analyst at the International Crisis Group, called the sanctions as a "highly important" step, noting that "targeting the enablers is the right way to go".

It was also noted that, Bogotá ratified a piece of legislation approving the anti-mercenary convention, designed to limit decades of Colombian involvement in overseas wars and transform national security policy.

A mercenary specialist, an expert on mercenaries, called for greater wariness, saying that "penalties are required yet incomplete for dealing with the growing mercenary trade".

"It’s an illicit economy and based out of the Emirates, which is difficult to penalize," he said. The UAE has been frequently alleged of supplying weapons to the paramilitary group, claims it rejects. "More contractors from Colombia are likely," McFate warned.