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The Washington has levied restrictions on a network of four individuals and four companies accused of recruiting former Colombian soldiers to combat alongside and instruct a militia force in Sudan the United States claims of genocidal acts.

Network Composition

Disclosing the sanctions on Tuesday, the US Treasury Department stated the scheme was primarily made up of individuals and businesses from Colombia.

Scores of former Colombian military personnel have allegedly journeyed to Sudan to combat beside the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a group accused of horrific war crimes including massacres based on ethnicity and mass abductions.

Revelation of Role

The role of these mercenaries was first uncovered last year, after an report which disclosed that more than 300 ex-military personnel had been contracted to engage in combat – an discovery that led to an unusual statement of regret from Colombia’s foreign ministry.

Colombian ex-soldiers have long been considered as highly prized fighters in conflict zones due to their vast combat experience gleaned from years of internal conflict, training on Western military gear, and high-level combat training.

Reported Actions

In the conflict, the Colombians have reportedly trained underage fighters, taught fighters to pilot drones, and engaged in frontline combat. An individual involved previously stated that instructing minors was "awful and crazy" but noted that "regrettably, war operates that way".

Targeted Persons

Among those targeted was a retired Colombian officer, a dual Colombian-Italian national and former army officer operating from the UAE. The Treasury accused him a central role in recruiting and deploying former Colombian soldiers to Sudan. His wife, Claudia Viviana Oliveros Forero, was also sanctioned.

Also on the penalty list was Mateo Andrés Duque Botero, a dual national who officials alleged managed a business implicated in managing finances and payments for the scheme. "Over the past two years, American entities associated with Duque carried out several money transfers, amounting to millions," the Treasury statement said.

Citizen of Colombia Mónica Muñoz Ucros was the final person to be sanctioned, with the entity she oversaw accused of wire transfers linked to Duque and his operations.

"Washington reiterates its demand for external actors to stop giving funding and arms to the belligerents," the agency stated.

Reaction

An expert, from a conflict think tank, called the sanctions as a "highly important" development, stating that "identifying the recruiters is the proper strategy".

Furthermore, the Colombian government has enacted a piece of legislation ratifying the anti-mercenary convention, designed to limit its citizens' long history in foreign conflicts and reshape national security policy.

Sean McFate, a authority on private military contractors, urged more caution, noting that "penalties are required yet incomplete for addressing rampant mercenarism".

"This is a shadow economy and operating from the Emirates, which is relatively sanction-proof," he said. The Emirati government has been widely accused of providing arms to the militia, allegations it disputes. "This trend will probably continue," McFate warned.