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The Washington has enforced penalties on a operation of four people and four firms alleged of recruiting South American contractors to combat alongside and instruct a Sudanese paramilitary group the United States claims of genocidal acts.

Network Composition

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

Hundreds of ex-soldiers from Colombia have allegedly journeyed to the conflict in Sudan to combat beside the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a force accused of terrible atrocities encompassing massacres based on ethnicity and mass abductions.

Revelation of Role

The participation of ex-soldiers first came to light the previous year, prompted by an report which disclosed that hundreds of former soldiers had been contracted to participate in the war – an discovery that resulted in an unprecedented apology from the Colombian government.

Colombian ex-soldiers have long been considered as among the world’s most sought-after mercenaries due to their extensive battlefield experience resulting from years of internal conflict, knowledge of Nato equipment, and superior tactical education.

Role in the Conflict

In the Sudanese theater, the Colombians have been accused of teaching minors, instructed militiamen in drone operation, and fought directly on the frontlines. A mercenary remarked that training children was "horrific and irrational" but added that "unfortunately that’s how war is".

Targeted Persons

Among those sanctioned was Álvaro Andrés Quijano Becerra, a individual with dual citizenship and retired Colombian military officer operating from the UAE. The government said he had a central role in recruiting and deploying mercenaries to Sudan. His wife, Claudia Oliveros, was penalized as well.

Also on the restricted list was Mateo Duque Botero, a dual Colombian-Spanish citizen who authorities say ran a firm accused of processing money and salaries for the scheme. "Over the past two years, US-based firms associated with Duque conducted numerous wire transfers, worth millions," the official announcement said.

Citizen of Colombia Mónica Muñoz was the final person to be targeted, with the company she managed alleged to have financial transactions linked to Duque and his companies.

"Washington reiterates its demand for foreign parties to halt the flow of funding and arms to the combatants," the department announced.

Reaction

Elizabeth Dickinson, from a conflict think tank, labeled the measures as a "highly important" development, noting that "calling out those who are doing the contracting is the right way to go".

It was also noted that, the Colombian government recently passed a law ratifying the global treaty against mercenarism, designed to limit years of participation by its nationals in foreign conflicts and transform national security policy.

Another expert, an expert on mercenaries, advised additional measures, noting that "restrictions are needed but not enough for addressing rampant mercenarism".

"It operates in the black market and operating from the UAE, which is relatively sanction-proof," he stated. The UAE has been frequently alleged of arming the RSF, claims it rejects. "More contractors from Colombia are likely," he advised.