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The Washington has imposed sanctions on a group of four individuals and four companies accused of enlisting South American contractors to combat alongside and instruct a Sudanese paramilitary group that Washington accuses of acts of genocide.

Network Composition

Revealing the restrictions on Tuesday, the US Treasury Department stated the operation was primarily made up of Colombian nationals and companies.

Scores of former Colombian military personnel have reportedly travelled to Sudan to operate with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a faction implicated in terrible atrocities including ethnically targeted slaughter and large-scale abductions.

Discovery of Participation

The involvement of Colombian fighters initially emerged last year, following an report which disclosed that over three hundred ex-military personnel had been hired to engage in combat – an revelation that resulted in an rare mea culpa from the Colombian government.

Former Colombian military have long been considered as some of the most in-demand contractors globally due to their extensive battlefield experience acquired during years of internal conflict, knowledge of Nato equipment, and high-level combat training.

Activities in Sudan

In the conflict, the mercenaries have been accused of teaching child soldiers, provided drone warfare training, and engaged in frontline combat. An individual involved was quoted as saying that training children was "horrific and irrational" but added that "unfortunately that’s how war is".

Sanctioned Individuals

Among those targeted was a retired Colombian officer, a dual Colombian-Italian national and ex-soldier based in the United Arab Emirates. The Treasury alleged he played a key part in hiring and sending 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 processing money and salaries for the scheme. "Recently, American entities linked to Duque conducted several money transfers, totalling millions of US dollars," the government release stated.

Colombian national Mónica Muñoz Ucros was the final person to be penalized, with the entity she oversaw accused of financial transactions connected to Duque and his companies.

"Washington reiterates its demand for foreign parties to stop giving funding and arms to the combatants," the department stated.

Analyst Commentary

An expert, from a conflict think tank, called the sanctions as a "major" development, saying that "targeting the enablers is the proper strategy".

It was also noted that, Colombia recently passed a piece of legislation endorsing the anti-mercenary convention, seeking to reduce decades of Colombian involvement in international fights and change domestic defense strategy.

A mercenary specialist, an expert on mercenaries, advised additional measures, saying that "sanctions are necessary but insufficient for addressing rampant mercenarism".

"It operates in the black market and based out of the UAE, which is largely insulated from sanctions," he said. The United Arab Emirates has been frequently alleged of arming the RSF, allegations it disputes. "Expect more Colombian mercenaries," he advised.