Colombian Mercenaries in Sudan's Darfur: A Trail of Death and Deception

In a shocking revelation, an investigation by AFP has uncovered a network that lured hundreds of Colombian ex-soldiers to Sudan's war-torn Darfur region, promising lucrative paychecks but delivering death and destruction. The mercenaries, recruited through a sophisticated network stretching from the Andes to Darfur, were deployed by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), accused of genocide. According to sources, the Colombians were initially recruited via WhatsApp and brought to Sudan via the UAE, where they underwent brief training missions. They then traveled into Sudan via at least two routes, with some passing through eastern Libya and others through a UAE-run airbase in Bosaso, Somalia. Geolocation of footage shot by the mercenaries themselves places them at the scene of some of the worst fighting in Darfur. The RSF, backed by the UAE, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Iran, has been waging a brutal war against the Sudanese army since 2023. Foreign mercenaries have appeared on both sides of the conflict, but none have conducted as sophisticated an operation as the Colombians, sought after for their expertise in drone and artillery warfare. In return for their services, the Colombians were paid up to $4,000 a month, a significant increase from their army pension. However, many did not survive the conflict, with at least 43 reported dead, including a 25-year-old fighter who died in combat last year. The recruitment network, led by retired Colombian colonel Alvaro Quijano, has been sanctioned by the United States for its role in the transnational network. Quijano's company, International Services Agency (A4SI), has sent recruits to the UAE, eastern Libya, and then into Sudan, where they were deployed by the RSF. The UAE has repeatedly denied backing the RSF, but reports from UN experts, US lawmakers, and international organisations say the Gulf state has supported the paramilitary in violation of a UN arms embargo on Darfur. The UAE's interests in Sudan's gold deposits, fertile farmland, long Red Sea coast, and strategic position between the Horn of Africa and the Sahel have been cited as a major factor in its support for the RSF. The Colombian government has banned the recruitment of mercenaries, but it may be too late for many of the country's veterans who have already been drawn into the conflict. The families of the deceased mercenaries continue to suffer in silence, with one widow saying, "They still haven't brought his body home."