U.S. sanctions network recruiting Colombians to fight in Sudan
December 10 (UPI) — The United States has blacklisted a network of four Colombians and four organizations accused of recruiting former Colombian military personnel to fight in the civil war in Sudan.
The sanctions were announced Tuesday by the U.S. Treasury Department, which said the network was aiding the Rapid Support Forces, a separatist paramilitary unit accused of ethnic cleansing and genocide in the nearly 1,000-day conflict.
RSF has been waging war against the Sudanese Armed Forces since April 2023. RSF has recruited hundreds of former Colombian military personnel since September 2024, according to the Treasury.
Colombian soldiers provide tactical and technical expertise to the RSF. They serve as infantrymen, artillerymen, drone pilots, vehicle operators and instructors, and some even teach children, according to the Treasury.
John Hurley, Treasury under-secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, said: “RSF has repeatedly demonstrated its willingness to target civilians, including babies and young children. Its brutality has deepened conflict and destabilized the region, creating conditions for terrorist groups to thrive.” a statement.
Colombian soldiers assisted RSF in the capture of El Fasher in North Darfur in late October after an 18-month offensive, during which he allegedly committed war crimes including mass killings, sexual violence and ethnically targeted torture.
The Treasury identified and sanctioned Alvaro Andrew Quijano Becerra, a 58-year-old retired Colombian officer accused by the United States of playing a leading role in the network originating from the United Arab Emirates. The International Services Agency, founded in Bogota, was also sanctioned for trying to take on the roles of drone operator, sniper and translator for the RSF through its website, group chats and town halls.
Colombia-based employment agency Maine Global Corp., Colombia-based Comercializadora San Bendito and Panama-based Global Staffing SA were the other three sanctioned entities.
The other three people blacklisted are Quijano’s wife, Claudia Viviana Oliveros Forero, 52; Mateo Andres Duque Botero (50), director of Maine Global; and Monica Munoz Ucros, 49, reserve manager of Maine Global and manager of Comercializadora San Bendito.
“Today’s sanctions impair RSF’s ability to use skilled Colombian combatants to investigate violence against civilians by disrupting a key source of external support for RSF,” State Department spokesman Thomas Pigott said. a statement.
The sanctions freeze the US-based assets of the individuals named and prohibit US persons from doing business with them.
