South American Mercenaries in the Sudanese Conflict Reportedly Recruited by UK-Registered Companies

Situated close to the shiny soccer ground of a Premier League club in the British capital is a squat, nondescript block of flats. Behind its unremarkable beige brickwork lies a grim reality: a cramped flat connected to deadly crimes unfolding thousands of miles to the south.

Per British official documents, this apartment in the capital is tied to a international network of firms involved in the mass recruitment of mercenaries to combat in Sudan alongside paramilitaries accused of myriad war crimes and genocide.

Scores of Ex- South American Soldiers Recruited

A large number of ex-soldiers from Colombia have been recruited to serve with Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a paramilitary group responsible for mass rapes, ethnic slaughter, and the systematic killing of women and children.

These contractors were key participants in the RSF's capture of the south-western Sudanese city of El Fasher in recent months, which sparked a killing frenzy that analysts say has cost at least 60,000 lives.

While accounts of violence increase, connections have been found between the fighters contracted to capture El Fasher and locations in the UK capital.

London Flat Connected to Sanctioned Company

The apartment in Tottenham is registered to a company named Zeuz Global, set up by two individuals identified and penalized recently by the American authorities for recruiting Colombian mercenaries to combat for the RSF.

Both individuals – citizens of Colombia in their fifties – are listed in records at the UK company registry as resident in the United Kingdom.

The company remains operational. The day after the United States imposed sanctions on those behind the recruitment network, Zeuz Global abruptly moved its official location to the centre of London. Its updated address matches a five-star hotel in Covent Garden.

The establishments in question said they had no link to Zeuz Global and had no idea why the firm had listed their addresses.

"It is of serious worry that the primary figures the American authorities states are orchestrating this fighter recruitment have been able to establish a UK company operating from a flat in the capital," stated Mike Lewis, a analyst and ex-participant of a UN panel on Sudan.

Concerns Voiced Over UK Company Oversight

Analysts say the situation raises concerns over how individuals publicly sanctioned by the US for "fueling the conflict in Sudan" were able to apparently set up and run a firm in the British 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 charged by the US with genocide.

When asked about Zeuz Global, Companies House did not comment on whether it had knowledge of the firm’s activities or verify the residency status of the penalized people.

Contacting Zeuz proved unsuccessful; its website, created in spring, was labelled as "being built" with lacking information.

Operation Headed by Retired Officer

According to the American authorities, the man at the heart of the Colombian recruiting network for the RSF is a dual Colombian-Italian national and retired Colombian military officer based in the Gulf state.

The US accuses this individual of playing a central role in hiring ex-military personnel to be sent to Sudan using a Colombian recruitment firm. His wife was also penalized for owning and managing the agency.

Another dual national was also sanctioned for overseeing a business accused of handling funds and payroll for the operation hiring the mercenaries.

"In 2024 and 2025, US-based firms linked with this individual engaged in numerous bank transactions, totalling millions of US dollars," the US treasury statement read.

Firm Establishment and Intensifying Conflict

In April of this year, the penalized figures set up a firm in the UK capital named ODP8 Ltd – later renamed Zeuz Global.

Shortly after, the RSF attacked the Zamzam displacement camp, slaughtering more than 1,500 innocent people. After its seizure, the camp was handed over to the hired fighters, who began planning for assaulting El Fasher.

The sanctioned individuals are named in Companies House records as owning "initial shareholdings" in the company, with one identified as a key controller.

Both list Britain as their "place of residency".

Impact on the War and Broader Concerns

The hiring of the Colombians has had a profound impact on the course of the war, experts state. These nationals have reportedly trained children to be combatants, as well as acting as snipers, infantrymen, trainers, and pilots for unmanned aircraft.

These aircraft were key in the fall of El Fasher and during fighting in other regions.

"The war in Sudan is a hi-tech one, with guided weapons and remote aircraft causing daily civilian deaths," said the analyst. "These weapons require external help to operate. We know that the Colombian mercenary operation has been a major component of this outside support."

He added that the participation of sanctioned individuals in a UK company underlined wider worries over the absence of rigorous checks when companies are set up.

"Having a UK company like this is a license for bad actors to do business with respectable entities. It's still more difficult to join a fitness centre in most cases than to set up a UK company," he stated.

Official Reaction and Ongoing Allegations

A UK official said that the new rollout of "mandatory identity verification" for corporate officers would provide more confidence about who was setting up and running UK companies.

The role of the South Americans in Sudan first emerged last year, prompting an apology from the South American nation's government.

One of the fighters recently confirmed that he had instructed minors in Sudan and fought in El Fasher.

The UAE, long accused of supplying weapons to the RSF, has also been linked to the hiring of Colombian mercenaries. A report alleged that UAE nationals supplying fighters to the RSF were linked to a senior UAE government official. The UAE has consistently denied these claims.

A UK official said: "The UK is calling for an immediate end to violence, the protection of non-combatants, and the lifting of barriers to humanitarian access."

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