Colombian Contractors in Sudan Reportedly Hired by British-Based Firms

Situated close to a shiny soccer ground of a Premier League club in the British capital is a plain, nondescript apartment building. Behind its ordinary beige brickwork exists a dark reality: a cramped second-floor apartment connected to murderous crimes taking place thousands of miles to the south.

According to British official documents, this apartment in the capital is connected to a transnational network of firms involved in the mass hiring of fighters to fight in the African nation alongside militias accused of numerous war crimes and genocide.

Hundreds of Former Colombian Military Recruited

Hundreds of former Colombian military personnel have been recruited to fight with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a paramilitary group responsible for mass rapes, ethnic slaughter, and the widespread murder of women and children.

These contractors were directly involved in the paramilitaries’ seizure of the south-western Sudanese city of El Fasher in recent months, which triggered a wave of violence that experts believe has claimed at least 60,000 lives.

While reports of violence increase, connections have been found between the fighters hired to overrun El Fasher and locations in the UK capital.

London Flat Connected to Censured Firm

The apartment in north London is registered to a company named Zeuz Global, established by two people identified and penalized last week by the American authorities for recruiting contractors to fight for the RSF.

Both individuals – citizens of Colombia in their 50s – are listed in records at Companies House as resident in Britain.

The company is active. The following day the US treasury announced restrictions on those behind the recruitment network, Zeuz Global suddenly relocated its registered address to the centre of London. Its new postcode matches one luxury accommodation in Covent Garden.

The establishments in question stated they had no link to Zeuz Global and were unaware why the company had listed their addresses.

"This is of serious worry that the primary figures the US government claims are orchestrating this fighter recruitment have been able to set up a UK company operating from a apartment in north London," stated Mike Lewis, a analyst and ex-participant of a UN panel on Sudan.

Questions Raised Over British Firm Checks

Analysts argue the situation raises questions over how people publicly sanctioned by the US for "fueling the conflict in Sudan" were able to apparently set up and run a firm in the UK capital.

The UK's top diplomat has condemned the RSF for "systematic killings, abuse and sexual violence" following the group’s seizure of El Fasher. The RSF has been accused by the US with genocide.

When asked about Zeuz Global, Companies House did not respond on whether it had knowledge of the firm’s activities or verify the location of the sanctioned individuals.

Reaching out to Zeuz proved unsuccessful; its website, set up in spring, was marked as "under construction" with lacking information.

Operation Led by Former Soldier

Per the US treasury, the figure at the heart of the Colombian recruiting network for the RSF is a citizen of two countries and former army officer located in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The US accuses this individual of having a key part in hiring former Colombian soldiers to be deployed to Sudan using a Bogotá-based employment agency. His wife was also penalized for owning and managing the agency.

Another individual with two citizenships was also sanctioned for managing a business accused of handling funds and salaries for the network employing the Colombian fighters.

"In 2024 and 2025, companies in America associated with this individual conducted numerous bank transactions, amounting to many millions of US dollars," the official announcement read.

Firm Establishment and Intensifying Conflict

In spring of the current year, the penalized figures set up a company in north London named ODP8 Ltd – later renamed Zeuz Global.

Three days later, the RSF assaulted the Zamzam displacement camp, killing over 1,500 civilians. After its seizure, the site was transferred to the hired fighters, who began planning for assaulting El Fasher.

The sanctioned individuals are named in official UK documents as owning "starting shares" in the company, with one named as a person of "significant control".

Both list the UK as their "place of residency".

Effect on the War and Wider Issues

The recruitment of the South Americans has had a significant effect on the course of the conflict, analysts say. These nationals have reportedly instructed minors to be combatants, as well as acting as snipers, foot soldiers, instructors, and pilots for drones.

These aircraft proved instrumental in the fall of El Fasher and during fighting in other regions.

"The war in Sudan is a technologically advanced one, with precision munitions and long-range drones causing regular civilian deaths," added the expert. "These weapons require external help to operate. We know that the Colombian mercenary operation has been a major component of this external assistance."

He noted that the participation of sanctioned individuals in a London firm underlined wider worries over the absence of rigorous checks when firms are established.

"Having a UK company like this is a passport for bad actors to do deals with respectable entities. It's still harder to join a gym in most cases than to establish a UK company," he said.

Government Response and Ongoing Allegations

A government source said that the recent introduction of "compulsory ID checks" for company directors would provide more confidence about who was establishing and controlling UK firms.

The Colombians’ involvement in Sudan first came to light last year, leading to an apology from Colombia’s foreign ministry.

One of the mercenaries recently admitted that he had trained children in Sudan and seen combat in El Fasher.

The United Arab Emirates, repeatedly alleged of supplying weapons to the RSF, has also been connected to the hiring of the contractors. A investigation alleged that Emirati business people providing fighters to the RSF were linked to a high-ranking Emirati figure. The UAE has repeatedly rejected these allegations.

A British government spokesperson commented: "The UK is calling for an halt to atrocities, the protection of civilians, and the lifting of barriers to humanitarian access."

They added that the UK had also imposed restrictions on RSF commanders for their role in the atrocities in El Fasher.