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

Tucked away near the shiny soccer ground of Tottenham Hotspur in the British capital is a squat, unremarkable apartment building. Beyond its ordinary facade exists a grim reality: a small second-floor apartment connected to deadly crimes unfolding a vast distance to the south.

According to British official documents, this one-bedroom flat in the capital is connected to a transnational network of firms implicated in the large-scale recruitment of mercenaries to fight in Sudan alongside militias accused of myriad war crimes and ethnic cleansing.

Hundreds of Former Colombian Military Enlisted

Hundreds of ex-soldiers from Colombia have been enlisted to fight with Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a armed faction responsible for sexual violence, ethnic slaughter, and the systematic murder of civilians.

Colombian mercenaries were directly involved in the RSF's seizure of the south-western Sudanese city of El Fasher in recent months, which sparked a wave of violence that analysts say has cost at least 60,000 lives.

As reports of violence increase, links have been found between the fighters contracted to overrun El Fasher and locations in the city of London.

London Flat Connected to Sanctioned Company

The flat in Tottenham is registered to a company called Zeuz Global, established by two people named and sanctioned recently by the US treasury for hiring contractors to combat for the RSF.

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

The company is operational. The day after the United States announced sanctions 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 five-star hotel in a central district.

Both hotels stated they had no connection to Zeuz Global and had no idea why the company had used their addresses.

"It is of major concern that the key individuals the American authorities claims are directing this fighter recruitment have been able to set up a UK company operating from a apartment in north London," stated Mike Lewis, a researcher and former member of a UN panel on Sudan.

Questions Raised Over British Firm Oversight

Analysts argue the saga raises questions over how individuals openly censured by the US for "fueling the civil war in Sudan" were able to apparently establish and operate a company in the British capital.

The UK's top diplomat has condemned the RSF for "systematic killings, torture and sexual violence" following the faction's capture of El Fasher. The RSF has been charged by the US with genocide.

When asked about Zeuz Global, the registry did not respond on whether it had awareness of the firm’s activities or confirm the location of the penalized people.

Reaching out to Zeuz was fruitless; its online site, created in spring, was labelled as "being built" with no contact details.

Network Led by Retired Officer

According to the American authorities, the figure at the centre of the South American recruitment operation 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 having a central role in hiring ex-military personnel to be deployed to Sudan using a Colombian employment agency. His wife was also sanctioned for owning and managing the firm.

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

"During 2024 and 2025, companies in America associated with this individual engaged in many bank transactions, amounting to millions of US dollars," the official announcement said.

Firm Establishment and Intensifying Conflict

In April of this year, the sanctioned individuals registered a firm in north London named ODP8 Ltd – later renamed Zeuz Global.

Three days later, the RSF attacked the Zamzam camp for displaced people, slaughtering over 1,500 innocent people. After its capture, the camp was transferred to the hired fighters, who began planning for assaulting El Fasher.

The penalized people are named in official UK documents as holding "starting shares" in the firm, with one identified as a person of "significant control".

The two list the UK as their "place of residency".

Effect on the War and Wider Issues

The hiring of the South Americans has had a significant effect on the trajectory of the conflict, analysts say. These fighters have allegedly instructed minors to be combatants, as well as serving as snipers, infantrymen, instructors, and pilots for drones.

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

"The war in Sudan is a technologically advanced one, with precision munitions and remote aircraft causing regular civilian deaths," said the analyst. "These weapons require outside assistance to operate. We know that the Colombian mercenary operation has been a significant part of this outside support."

He added that the participation of sanctioned individuals in a London firm underlined broader concerns over the lack of rigorous checks when firms are set up.

"Owning a UK company like this is a license for criminals to do business with legitimate counterparts. It's still more difficult to join a gym in most cases than to set up a UK company," he said.

Government Response and Ongoing Allegations

A UK official stated that the new rollout of "compulsory ID checks" for corporate officers would provide greater assurance about who was establishing and running UK firms.

The Colombians’ involvement in Sudan first came to light last year, prompting an expression of regret from the South American nation's government.

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

The UAE, long accused of supplying weapons to the RSF, has also been linked to the hiring of the contractors. A investigation alleged that Emirati business people supplying Colombians to the RSF were linked to a high-ranking Emirati figure. The UAE has consistently denied these claims.

A British government spokesperson said: "The UK is calling for an halt to atrocities, the safety of civilians, and the removal of obstacles to humanitarian access."

They noted that the UK had also sanctioned RSF leaders for their role in the atrocities in El Fasher.