South American Contractors in the Sudanese Conflict Reportedly Hired by UK-Registered Firms

Tucked away near the shiny football stadium of Tottenham Hotspur in London is a plain, nondescript apartment building. Behind its unremarkable beige brickwork exists a grim reality: a small flat connected to deadly atrocities unfolding a vast distance to the south.

According to UK government records, this apartment in the capital is connected to a international network of firms implicated in the mass hiring of mercenaries to combat in the African nation alongside paramilitaries accused of myriad atrocities and ethnic cleansing.

Scores of Ex- Colombian Military Enlisted

A large number of ex-soldiers from Colombia have been enlisted to fight with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a armed faction responsible for mass rapes, ethnic slaughter, and the widespread killing of civilians.

These contractors were directly involved in the paramilitaries’ capture of the western Sudanese city of El Fasher in recent months, which triggered a wave of violence that analysts say has cost over 60,000 lives.

As accounts of atrocities increase, connections have been identified between the fighters contracted to capture El Fasher and addresses in the city of London.

London Flat Connected to Censured Firm

The flat in Tottenham is registered to a company called Zeuz Global, set up by two individuals identified and penalized recently by the US treasury for hiring Colombian mercenaries to fight for the RSF.

Both individuals – citizens of Colombia in their 50s – are described in documents at the UK company registry as resident in Britain.

The firm is operational. The following day the US treasury imposed sanctions on those running the Colombian mercenary operation, Zeuz Global abruptly moved its registered address to the centre of central London. Its updated address matches a luxury accommodation in a central district.

Both hotels said they had no connection to Zeuz Global and were unaware why the firm had listed their postcodes.

"It is of serious worry that the key individuals the American authorities claims are orchestrating this mercenary supply have been able to set up a UK company based from a flat in the capital," stated an expert, a analyst and former member of a United Nations group on Sudan.

Questions Raised Over UK Company Checks

Experts argue the saga highlights concerns over how people openly censured by the US for "fueling the civil war in Sudan" were able to seemingly set up and run a firm in the British capital.

The British foreign secretary has condemned the RSF for "organized murder, torture and assault" following the faction's capture of El Fasher. The RSF has been charged by the US with genocide.

When asked about the company, Companies House did not comment on whether it had knowledge of the company's operations or verify the residency status of the penalized people.

Contacting Zeuz was fruitless; its online site, created in May, was labelled as "being built" with lacking information.

Operation Headed by Retired Officer

According to the US treasury, the man at the centre of the South American recruitment operation for the RSF is a citizen of two countries and retired Colombian military officer located in the Gulf state.

The US alleges this individual of playing a central role in hiring ex-military personnel to be sent to Sudan using a Colombian recruitment firm. His spouse was also sanctioned for running the agency.

Another individual with two citizenships was similarly censured for managing a company accused of processing money and salaries for the network employing the Colombian fighters.

"In 2024 and 2025, US-based firms associated with this individual conducted numerous bank transactions, totalling many millions of US dollars," the official announcement read.

Firm Establishment and Escalating Violence

In spring of the current year, the penalized figures set up a firm in north London called ODP8 Ltd – later re-branded Zeuz Global.

Shortly after, the RSF assaulted the Zamzam camp for displaced people, slaughtering over 1,500 innocent people. After its seizure, the camp was handed over to Colombian mercenaries, who began preparations for assaulting El Fasher.

The sanctioned individuals are named in Companies House records as owning "starting shares" in the firm, with one identified as a key controller.

Both list Britain as their "place of residency".

Effect on the Conflict and Wider Issues

The recruitment of the Colombians has had a significant effect on the trajectory of the conflict, analysts say. These fighters have allegedly trained children to be soldiers, as well as serving as marksmen, infantrymen, trainers, and pilots for drones.

These drones were instrumental in the capture of El Fasher and during combat in other regions.

"The war in Sudan is a hi-tech one, with precision munitions and long-range drones causing regular fatalities," said the expert. "These systems require outside assistance to operate. We know that the Colombian mercenary operation has been a major component of this external assistance."

He added that the participation of penalized persons in a UK company underlined wider worries over the absence of rigorous checks when firms are set up.

"Having a UK company like this is a passport for criminals to do deals 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.

Government Response and Ongoing Allegations

A government source stated that the new rollout of "mandatory identity verification" for corporate officers would provide more confidence about who was establishing and controlling UK firms.

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

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

The United Arab Emirates, repeatedly alleged of supplying weapons to the RSF, has also been linked to the recruitment of the contractors. A investigation alleged that UAE nationals providing Colombians to the RSF were linked to a senior UAE government official. The UAE has repeatedly rejected these allegations.

A UK official commented: "The UK is calling for an halt to violence, the protection of civilians, and the lifting of obstacles to humanitarian access."

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