South American Mercenaries in Sudan Reportedly Recruited by British-Based Firms
Situated close to a gleaming soccer ground of a Premier League club in the British capital is a plain, unremarkable block of flats. Beyond its unremarkable facade lies a dark reality: a cramped second-floor apartment connected to deadly crimes unfolding a vast distance to the south.
According to UK government records, this one-bedroom flat in north London is connected to a transnational web of companies implicated in the mass hiring of fighters to fight in Sudan alongside paramilitaries accused of myriad atrocities and ethnic cleansing.
Scores of Ex- Colombian Military Recruited
Hundreds of ex-soldiers from Colombia have been recruited to fight with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a armed faction blamed for sexual violence, targeted killings, and the systematic murder of civilians.
Colombian mercenaries were key participants in the RSF's capture of the western Sudanese city of El Fasher in recent months, which triggered a killing frenzy that analysts say has cost at least 60,000 lives.
While reports of violence increase, connections have been identified between the fighters hired to capture El Fasher and addresses in the city of London.
UK Address Linked to Sanctioned Company
The apartment in Tottenham is listed to a corporation called Zeuz Global, set up by two individuals named and penalized last week by the US treasury for recruiting Colombian mercenaries to fight for the RSF.
Both figures – Colombian nationals in their 50s – are described in documents at Companies House as living in Britain.
The company remains active. The following day the US treasury imposed sanctions on those running the recruitment network, Zeuz Global suddenly relocated its official location to the very heart of central London. Its updated address matches a five-star hotel in Covent Garden.
Both hotels said they had no link to Zeuz Global and had no idea why the firm had used their postcodes.
"It is of serious worry that the primary figures the US government states are directing this mercenary supply have been able to set up a UK company operating from a flat in north London," stated an expert, a analyst and ex-participant of a United Nations group on Sudan.
Concerns Voiced Over UK Company Oversight
Analysts argue the situation raises questions over how individuals openly censured by the US for "contributing to the conflict in Sudan" were able to apparently establish and operate a firm in the UK capital.
The UK's top diplomat has censured the RSF for "organized murder, abuse and sexual violence" following the group’s seizure of El Fasher. The RSF has been charged by the US with acts of genocide.
When asked about the company, the registry did not comment on whether it had knowledge of the company's operations or verify the residency status of the penalized people.
Reaching out to Zeuz proved fruitless; its website, created in May, was marked as "under construction" with no contact details.
Network Headed by Former Soldier
According to the US treasury, the figure at the heart of the South American recruitment operation for the RSF is a dual Colombian-Italian national and retired Colombian military officer located in the Gulf state.
The US accuses 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 penalized for owning and managing the firm.
Another individual with two citizenships was also sanctioned for overseeing a business accused of processing money and payroll for the operation employing the mercenaries.
"In 2024 and 2025, companies in America linked with this individual engaged in numerous wire transfers, totalling many millions of US dollars," the US treasury statement said.
Company Registration and Intensifying Conflict
In April of this year, the sanctioned individuals registered a company in the UK capital named ODP8 Ltd – later renamed Zeuz Global.
Shortly after, the RSF assaulted the Zamzam camp for displaced people, slaughtering more than 1,500 innocent people. After its seizure, the site was handed over to the hired fighters, who began preparations for assaulting El Fasher.
The penalized people are named in official UK documents as holding "initial shareholdings" in the firm, with one named as a key controller.
The two list Britain as their "place of residency".
Impact on the Conflict and Broader Concerns
The hiring of the South Americans has had a profound impact on the trajectory of the war, analysts say. These fighters have allegedly instructed minors to be soldiers, as well as serving as snipers, foot soldiers, instructors, and pilots for unmanned aircraft.
These drones proved key in the fall of El Fasher and during combat in other regions.
"The war in Sudan is a hi-tech one, with precision munitions and remote aircraft causing daily civilian deaths," said the analyst. "These systems require outside assistance to operate. We know that the Colombian mercenary operation has been a significant part of this outside support."
He noted that the involvement of penalized persons in a UK company underlined wider worries over the absence of strict vetting when companies are established.
"Owning a UK company like this is a passport for bad actors to do business with respectable entities. It's still harder to join a gym in most cases than to establish a UK company," he stated.
Official Reaction and Ongoing Allegations
A UK official said that the new rollout of "compulsory ID checks" for company directors would provide greater assurance about who was establishing and running UK companies.
The role of the South Americans in Sudan first came to light last year, prompting an apology from Colombia’s foreign ministry.
One of the mercenaries recently admitted that he had trained children in Sudan and fought in El Fasher.
The UAE, long accused of arming the RSF, has also been connected to the recruitment of the contractors. A investigation alleged that Emirati business people supplying fighters to the RSF were linked to a senior UAE government official. The UAE has consistently denied these allegations.
A British government spokesperson said: "The UK is calling for an immediate end to atrocities, the safety of civilians, and the removal of obstacles to aid delivery."
They added that the UK had also imposed restrictions on RSF commanders for their part in the crimes in El Fasher.