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The Washington has imposed sanctions on a network of four individuals and four companies accused of enlisting former Colombian soldiers to support and educate a armed faction in Sudan the United States claims of acts of genocide.

Network Composition

Revealing the measures on Tuesday, the Treasury stated the scheme was primarily made up of Colombian nationals and companies.

Scores of ex-soldiers from Colombia have been recruited to go to the conflict in Sudan to operate with the Sudanese RSF militia, a group implicated in terrible atrocities encompassing targeted ethnic killings and mass abductions.

Revelation of Role

The role of these mercenaries initially emerged last year, following an investigation which disclosed that hundreds of retired troops had been contracted to fight – an event that prompted an unprecedented apology from officials in Bogotá.

Former Colombian military have historically been seen as among the world’s most sought-after mercenaries due to their considerable warzone knowledge resulting from years of internal conflict, familiarity with Nato equipment, and high-level combat training.

Activities in Sudan

In Sudan, the contractors have allegedly instructed minors, provided drone warfare training, and participated in direct battles. An individual involved previously stated that working with child soldiers was "awful and crazy" but added that "sadly, that is the nature of conflict".

Targeted Persons

Among those targeted was Álvaro Andrés Quijano Becerra, a dual Colombian-Italian national and ex-soldier based in the UAE. The Treasury said he had a key part in enlisting and transporting mercenaries to Sudan. His wife, Claudia Oliveros, was also sanctioned.

Also on the penalty list was Mateo Duque Botero, a dual Colombian-Spanish citizen who the Treasury stated ran a firm linked to managing finances and payments for the scheme. "Recently, American entities connected to Duque carried out numerous wire transfers, amounting to millions," the official announcement said.

Citizen of Colombia Mónica Muñoz Ucros was the final person to be targeted, with the entity she oversaw said to have conducted financial transactions connected to Duque and his companies.

"The United States again calls on foreign parties to cease providing monetary and weaponry aid to the belligerents," the agency announced.

Expert Analysis

An expert, senior analyst at the International Crisis Group, labeled the actions as a "major" development, saying that "identifying the recruiters is the right way to go".

It was also noted that, Colombia recently passed a piece of legislation approving the global treaty against mercenarism, designed to limit decades of Colombian involvement in foreign conflicts and reshape its security approach.

A mercenary specialist, a authority on private military contractors, called for greater wariness, saying that "penalties are required yet incomplete for combating the growing mercenary trade".

"This is a shadow economy and based out of the Emirates, which is relatively sanction-proof," he commented. The Emirati government has been repeatedly implicated of supplying weapons to the paramilitary group, allegations it disputes. "Expect more Colombian mercenaries," the expert cautioned.