Summary
The U.S. Treasury on April 17 moved to sanction five companies and individuals it says helped recruit former Colombian military personnel to fight for a Sudanese paramilitary group, a network the department said has intensified a humanitarian crisis in the country. The Treasury also called on both the Sudanese government army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to accept a three-month humanitarian truce without conditions. International donors convened a funding conference that yielded over 1.5 billion euros in pledged humanitarian assistance.
WASHINGTON - The U.S. government announced sanctions on Friday targeting five companies and individuals it identified as playing roles in the recruitment of former members of Colombia’s military to serve on behalf of a paramilitary organization in Sudan. In a statement, the Treasury Department said, "This network has fueled the conflict, which has given rise to one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises and famines."
The Treasury said the flow of hundreds of former Colombian forces into Sudan has bolstered the Rapid Support Forces, with recruits performing both combat and technical roles and participating in engagements across the country. The department described the ongoing confrontation between the Sudanese army and the RSF as a brutal, three-year war that aid organizations say has produced the globe’s worst humanitarian crisis.
Those designated under the sanctions include Fenix Human Resources SAS, an employment agency based in Bogota, and its manager, Jose Libardo Quijano Torres. The measures also name former Colombian Army Colonel Jose Oscar Garcia Batt, identified as the owner of a Bogota-based recruiting company called Global Qowa Al-Basheria SAS, along with that firm’s manager, Omar Fernando Garcia Batte.
The sanctions freeze all properties and interests in the United States that belong to the named individuals and companies, effectively blocking access to U.S.-based assets and financial channels for those designated.
In its statement, the Treasury urged both the Sudanese government army and the RSF to accept a three-month humanitarian truce without conditions - a pause the department said would help address the immediate needs of civilians caught in the conflict.
Separately, an international fundraising conference aimed at mobilizing humanitarian support for Sudan reported pledges exceeding 1.5 billion euros, which the German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said amounts to roughly $1.77 billion. The conference was held against a backdrop of tightening development budgets among established donors and followed earlier meetings in London and Paris. Organizers said the gathering sought to bring renewed attention to Sudan after global focus shifted toward the longer-running war in Ukraine and the conflict in Iran.
Context and immediate effects
The Treasury’s actions focus on disrupting recruitment channels that have supplied personnel to the RSF and on signaling U.S. pressure for a humanitarian pause. The international pledges highlight donors' efforts to respond to the crisis even as development spending faces constraints.