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The United States has enforced penalties on a operation of four individuals and four companies charged of recruiting Colombian mercenaries to combat alongside and instruct a militia force in Sudan which the US alleges of committing genocide.

Network Composition

Revealing the measures on Tuesday, the US Treasury Department stated the scheme was mostly comprised of Colombian nationals and companies.

Hundreds of former Colombian military personnel have reportedly travelled to Sudan to combat beside the Sudanese RSF militia, a group linked to horrific war crimes including targeted ethnic killings and large-scale abductions.

Discovery of Participation

The role of these mercenaries initially emerged last year, prompted by an inquiry which found that hundreds of former soldiers had been recruited to participate in the war – an discovery that resulted in an unprecedented apology from the Colombian government.

Colombian ex-soldiers have widely regarded as highly prized fighters in conflict zones due to their extensive battlefield experience acquired during decades of civil war, familiarity with advanced weaponry, and high-level combat training.

Role in the Conflict

In the Sudanese theater, the contractors have reportedly trained child soldiers, instructed militiamen in drone operation, and participated in direct battles. A mercenary previously stated that training children was "terrible and insane" but commented that "sadly, that is the nature of conflict".

Named Entities

Among those penalized was Álvaro Andrés Quijano Becerra, a individual with dual citizenship and former army officer operating from the UAE. The US authorities said he had a central role in hiring and sending ex-military personnel to Sudan. His spouse, Claudia Viviana Oliveros Forero, was also sanctioned.

Also on the penalty list was Duque Botero, a dual Colombian-Spanish citizen who officials alleged oversaw a company linked to handling funds and payroll for the network. "Recently, American entities connected to Duque conducted multiple financial transactions, amounting to millions," the government release noted.

Individual Mónica Muñoz Ucros was the fourth individual to be targeted, with the entity she oversaw alleged to have money transfers associated with Duque and his operations.

"The US once more urges outside forces to halt the flow of funding and arms to the belligerents," the agency stated.

Reaction

Elizabeth Dickinson, senior analyst at the International Crisis Group, described the measures as a "major" milestone, stating that "identifying the recruiters is the correct approach".

She added that, Bogotá ratified a piece of legislation ratifying the anti-mercenary convention, seeking to reduce years of participation by its nationals in foreign conflicts and change domestic defense strategy.

Sean McFate, a scholar on the subject, called for greater wariness, noting that "sanctions are necessary but insufficient for combating widespread use of contractors".

"This is a shadow economy and based out of the Emirates, which is difficult to penalize," he commented. The UAE has been repeatedly implicated of providing arms to the militia, claims it rejects. "Expect more Colombian mercenaries," McFate warned.