Colombian Contractors in the Sudanese Conflict Allegedly Recruited by UK-Registered Companies

Tucked away near a gleaming football stadium of a Premier League club in the British capital lies a plain, unremarkable block of flats. Beyond its ordinary beige brickwork exists a grim reality: a small flat linked to murderous atrocities unfolding thousands of miles to the south.

According to British official documents, this one-bedroom flat in the capital is connected to a international network of companies implicated in the mass hiring of mercenaries to fight in the African nation alongside militias charged of numerous atrocities and ethnic cleansing.

Scores of Ex- South American Soldiers Recruited

Hundreds of former Colombian military personnel have been enlisted to fight with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a armed faction blamed for mass rapes, targeted killings, and the systematic murder of women and children.

These contractors were directly involved in the RSF's capture of the western Sudanese city of El Fasher in recent months, which triggered a wave of violence that experts believe has cost over 60,000 lives.

While reports of violence mount, connections have been identified between the mercenaries hired to capture El Fasher and addresses in the UK capital.

UK Address Connected to Censured Firm

The flat in north London is registered to a company called Zeuz Global, established by two individuals named and sanctioned recently by the American authorities for recruiting contractors to combat for the RSF.

Both individuals – citizens of Colombia in their fifties – are listed in documents at Companies House as resident in the United Kingdom.

The company is active. The following day the United States imposed restrictions on those behind the Colombian mercenary operation, Zeuz Global suddenly relocated its registered address to the centre of central London. Its new postcode corresponds to one luxury accommodation in a central district.

The establishments in question stated they had no connection to Zeuz Global and had no idea why the firm had listed their postcodes.

"It is of serious worry that the primary figures the US government claims are directing this mercenary supply have been able to establish a UK company based from a flat in north London," stated an expert, a researcher and former member of a UN panel on Sudan.

Concerns Voiced Over UK Company Checks

Analysts argue the situation raises concerns over how individuals openly censured by the US for "fueling the civil war in Sudan" were able to apparently set up and run a firm in the British capital.

The British foreign secretary has censured the RSF for "organized murder, torture and sexual violence" following the group’s capture of El Fasher. The RSF has been charged by the US with acts of genocide.

When asked about Zeuz Global, the registry did not comment on whether it had awareness of the company's operations or verify the residency status of the sanctioned individuals.

Reaching out to Zeuz proved unsuccessful; its website, set up in May, was marked as "being built" with lacking information.

Operation Led by Former Soldier

According to the US treasury, the figure at the centre of the Colombian recruiting network for the RSF is a citizen of two countries and former army officer located in the Gulf state.

The US alleges this individual of playing a central role in hiring ex-military personnel to be deployed to Sudan using a Bogotá-based recruitment firm. His wife was also sanctioned for running the firm.

Another dual national was similarly censured for overseeing a company alleged of handling funds and salaries for the network hiring the Colombian fighters.

"During 2024 and 2025, US-based firms associated with this individual conducted numerous bank transactions, amounting to millions of US dollars," the US treasury statement said.

Company Registration 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 attacked the Zamzam displacement camp, slaughtering more than 1,500 civilians. After its capture, the site was handed over to Colombian mercenaries, who began planning for assaulting El Fasher.

The penalized people are named in Companies House records as holding "initial shareholdings" in the firm, with one named as a key controller.

Both describe Britain as their "place of residency".

Impact on the War and Wider Issues

The hiring of the Colombians has had a significant effect on the course of the war, analysts say. These nationals have reportedly instructed minors to be combatants, as well as acting as snipers, infantrymen, trainers, and pilots for unmanned aircraft.

These drones were instrumental in the capture of El Fasher and during fighting in surrounding areas.

"The war in Sudan is a hi-tech one, with precision munitions and remote aircraft causing daily civilian deaths," added the expert. "These weapons require outside assistance to operate. We know that the recruitment network has been a significant part of this outside support."

He noted that the involvement of sanctioned individuals in a London firm underlined broader concerns over the lack of rigorous checks when companies are set up.

"Owning a UK company like this is a license for bad actors to do business with legitimate counterparts. It's still harder to join a fitness centre in most cases than to set up a UK company," he stated.

Government Response and Ongoing Allegations

A government source stated that the new rollout of "mandatory identity verification" for company directors would provide greater assurance about who was setting up and controlling UK companies.

The Colombians’ involvement in Sudan first emerged last year, prompting an apology from the South American nation's government.

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

The United Arab Emirates, repeatedly alleged of supplying weapons to the RSF, has also been connected to the recruitment of Colombian mercenaries. A investigation alleged that UAE nationals supplying Colombians to the RSF were linked to a high-ranking Emirati figure. The UAE has repeatedly rejected these claims.

A British government spokesperson said: "The UK is calling for an immediate end to atrocities, the protection of civilians, and the lifting of obstacles to humanitarian access."

They noted that the UK had also sanctioned RSF commanders for their part in the crimes in El Fasher.