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The Washington has imposed sanctions on a network of four individuals and four companies alleged of recruiting Colombian mercenaries to combat alongside and instruct a Sudanese paramilitary group the United States claims of genocidal acts.

Group Makeup

Revealing the measures on this week, the American treasury stated the network was primarily made up of Colombian nationals and companies.

Numerous of retired Colombian troops have allegedly journeyed to Sudan to combat beside the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a faction accused of terrible atrocities including massacres based on ethnicity and widespread kidnappings.

Revelation of Role

The role of these mercenaries was first uncovered the previous year, after an report which found that hundreds of former soldiers had been recruited to fight – an event that led to an rare mea culpa from Colombia’s foreign ministry.

Colombian ex-soldiers have long been considered as highly prized fighters in conflict zones due to their extensive battlefield experience resulting from years of internal conflict, knowledge of advanced weaponry, and elite military instruction.

Reported Actions

In the conflict, the Colombians have allegedly instructed underage fighters, instructed militiamen in drone operation, and engaged in frontline combat. A mercenary previously stated that training children was "awful and crazy" but noted that "regrettably, war operates that way".

Targeted Persons

Among those sanctioned was a retired Colombian officer, a individual with dual citizenship and retired Colombian military officer based in the UAE. The Treasury accused him a key part in enlisting and transporting mercenaries to Sudan. His wife, Claudia Viviana Oliveros Forero, was similarly targeted.

Also on the restricted list was Mateo Andrés Duque Botero, a individual with Colombian and Spanish citizenship who the Treasury stated ran a firm linked to processing money and salaries for the recruitment operation. "Over the past two years, American entities linked to Duque carried out numerous wire transfers, worth millions," the Treasury statement stated.

Colombian national Mónica Muñoz was the final person to be sanctioned, with the entity she oversaw said to have conducted financial transactions associated with Duque and his companies.

"The United States again calls on outside forces to halt the flow of monetary and weaponry aid to the combatants," the Treasury stated.

Reaction

Elizabeth Dickinson, from a conflict think tank, called the actions as a "major" milestone, noting that "calling out those who are doing the contracting is the proper strategy".

It was also noted that, the Colombian government ratified a law ratifying the anti-mercenary convention, designed to limit years of participation by its nationals in overseas wars and transform domestic defense strategy.

Sean McFate, an expert on mercenaries, urged more caution, saying that "restrictions are needed but not enough for addressing the growing mercenary trade".

"It’s an illicit economy and centered in the UAE, which is largely insulated from sanctions," he commented. The Emirati government has been frequently alleged of supplying weapons to the paramilitary group, allegations it disputes. "This trend will probably continue," McFate warned.