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The US government has imposed sanctions on a operation of four individuals and four companies accused of enlisting South American contractors to combat alongside and instruct a armed faction in Sudan which the US alleges of genocidal acts.

Group Makeup

Announcing the measures on this week, the American treasury stated the network was primarily made up of individuals and businesses from Colombia.

Hundreds of ex-soldiers from Colombia have allegedly journeyed to Sudan to operate with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a faction implicated in terrible atrocities such as massacres based on ethnicity and widespread kidnappings.

Discovery of Participation

The participation of ex-soldiers was first uncovered the previous year, following an inquiry which disclosed that hundreds of retired troops had been contracted to engage in combat – an revelation that prompted an rare mea culpa from officials in Bogotá.

Former Colombian military have historically been seen as among the world’s most sought-after mercenaries due to their extensive battlefield experience resulting from decades of civil war, familiarity with Nato equipment, and elite military instruction.

Role in the Conflict

In the conflict, the contractors have reportedly trained minors, taught fighters to pilot drones, and engaged in frontline combat. A mercenary previously stated that training children was "terrible and insane" but commented that "regrettably, war operates that way".

Sanctioned Individuals

Among those targeted was a dual national, a dual Colombian-Italian national and former army officer based in the Dubai. The US authorities alleged he played a central role in enlisting and transporting mercenaries to Sudan. His spouse, Claudia Oliveros, was also sanctioned.

Also on the sanctions list was Mateo Andrés Duque Botero, a individual with Colombian and Spanish citizenship who the Treasury stated ran a firm implicated in handling funds and payroll for the network. "Over the past two years, US-based firms associated with Duque engaged in multiple financial transactions, amounting to millions," the Treasury statement stated.

Citizen of Colombia Mónica Muñoz was the other individual to be targeted, with the firm she operated accused of money transfers connected to Duque and his operations.

"The United States again calls on external actors to halt the flow of funding and arms to the belligerents," the agency said in a statement.

Expert Analysis

Elizabeth Dickinson, from a conflict think tank, called the sanctions as a "highly important" milestone, stating that "calling out those who are doing the contracting is the right way to go".

Furthermore, Colombia has enacted a law approving the anti-mercenary convention, aiming to curb its citizens' long history in overseas wars and change its security approach.

A mercenary specialist, an expert on mercenaries, urged more caution, noting that "restrictions are needed but not enough for addressing rampant mercenarism".

"It’s an illicit economy and based out of the UAE, which is largely insulated from sanctions," he commented. The UAE has been widely accused of arming the RSF, an accusation it has denied. "More contractors from Colombia are likely," McFate warned.