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The Washington has levied restrictions on a group of four people and four firms accused of hiring South American contractors to support and educate a armed faction in Sudan that Washington accuses of committing genocide.

Network Composition

Disclosing the restrictions on this week, the US Treasury Department stated the operation was largely composed of individuals and businesses from Colombia.

Scores of ex-soldiers from Colombia have allegedly journeyed to Sudan to combat beside the Sudanese RSF militia, a force linked to terrible atrocities encompassing ethnically targeted slaughter and large-scale abductions.

Discovery of Participation

The role of these mercenaries was first uncovered the previous year, after an investigation which revealed that over three hundred ex-military personnel had been contracted to participate in the war – an revelation that led to an unprecedented apology from the Colombian government.

Former Colombian military have historically been seen as among the world’s most sought-after mercenaries due to their extensive battlefield experience gleaned from years of internal conflict, familiarity with Western military gear, and elite military instruction.

Role in the Conflict

In the Sudanese theater, the mercenaries have reportedly trained underage fighters, provided drone warfare training, and participated in direct battles. A mercenary remarked that training children was "horrific and irrational" but added that "sadly, that is the nature of conflict".

Sanctioned Individuals

Among those sanctioned was a dual national, a individual with dual citizenship and ex-soldier based in the Dubai. The government said he had a central role in enlisting and transporting former Colombian soldiers to Sudan. His wife, Claudia Oliveros, was also sanctioned.

Also on the sanctions list was Mateo Duque Botero, a individual with Colombian and Spanish citizenship who officials alleged managed a business accused of processing money and salaries for the recruitment operation. "Recently, American entities connected to Duque conducted numerous wire transfers, amounting to millions," the Treasury statement stated.

Citizen of Colombia Mónica Muñoz was the other individual to be sanctioned, with the firm she operated accused of financial transactions associated with Duque and his companies.

"Washington reiterates its demand for external actors to halt the flow of funding and arms to the warring parties," the department announced.

Reaction

Elizabeth Dickinson, with the International Crisis Group, called the actions as a "major" development, noting that "calling out those who are doing the contracting is the right way to go".

It was also noted that, Colombia ratified a piece of legislation ratifying the International Convention Against the Recruitment and Use of Mercenaries, seeking to reduce years of participation by its nationals in foreign conflicts and change domestic defense strategy.

Another expert, a authority on private military contractors, urged more caution, saying that "sanctions are necessary but insufficient for dealing with rampant mercenarism".

"It operates in the black market and based out of Dubai, which is largely insulated from sanctions," he stated. The UAE has been repeatedly implicated of arming the RSF, an accusation it has denied. "This trend will probably continue," the expert cautioned.