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The US government has levied restrictions on a network of four individuals and four companies charged of enlisting South American contractors to support and educate a armed faction in Sudan the United States claims of committing genocide.

Group Makeup

Announcing the sanctions on this week, the US Treasury Department stated the network was mostly comprised of Colombian nationals and companies.

Hundreds of former Colombian military personnel have been recruited to go to Sudan to combat beside the Sudanese RSF militia, a group linked to severe violations encompassing ethnically targeted slaughter and mass abductions.

Revelation of Role

The involvement of Colombian fighters initially emerged last year, following an investigation which revealed that over three hundred former soldiers had been contracted to participate in the war – an event that led to an rare mea culpa from the Colombian government.

Former Colombian military have historically been seen as some of the most in-demand contractors globally due to their vast combat experience acquired during decades of civil war, familiarity with Nato equipment, and high-level combat training.

Reported Actions

In the Sudanese theater, the mercenaries have allegedly instructed minors, provided drone warfare training, and engaged in frontline combat. An individual involved previously stated that instructing minors was "horrific and irrational" but commented that "sadly, that is the nature of conflict".

Targeted Persons

Among those sanctioned was a dual national, a citizen of both Colombia and Italy and retired Colombian military officer located in the Dubai. The Treasury said he had a key part in hiring and sending former Colombian soldiers to Sudan. His spouse, Claudia Viviana Oliveros Forero, was penalized as well.

Also on the restricted list was Duque Botero, a dual national who the Treasury stated managed a business implicated in managing finances and payments for the network. "Over the past two years, US-based firms associated with Duque engaged in numerous wire transfers, amounting to millions," the official announcement noted.

Colombian national Mónica Muñoz was the other individual to be targeted, with the company she managed said to have conducted financial transactions connected to Duque and his businesses.

"The US once more urges external actors to halt the flow of monetary and weaponry aid to the combatants," the agency stated.

Analyst Commentary

An expert, with the International Crisis Group, called the actions as a "very significant" milestone, saying that "calling out those who are doing the contracting is the right way to go".

Furthermore, Colombia has enacted a law approving the International Convention Against the Recruitment and Use of Mercenaries, designed to limit decades of Colombian involvement in overseas wars and change national security policy.

Another expert, a scholar on the subject, called for greater wariness, noting that "sanctions are necessary but insufficient for combating the growing mercenary trade".

"It’s an illicit economy and based out of the UAE, which is relatively sanction-proof," he said. The UAE has been frequently alleged of providing arms to the militia, claims it rejects. "Expect more Colombian mercenaries," McFate warned.