South American Mercenaries in Sudan Reportedly Recruited by UK-Registered Companies

Situated close to a gleaming soccer ground of a Premier League club in London lies a squat, nondescript block of flats. Behind its unremarkable beige brickwork exists a dark secret: a small second-floor apartment connected to deadly atrocities taking place a vast distance to the south.

Per UK government records, this one-bedroom flat in north London is tied to a transnational network of companies involved in the large-scale recruitment of mercenaries to fight in Sudan alongside militias charged of numerous war crimes and genocide.

Hundreds of Former South American Soldiers Recruited

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

Colombian mercenaries were directly involved in the paramilitaries’ capture of the 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 accounts of atrocities increase, connections have been identified between the mercenaries contracted to capture El Fasher and locations in the UK capital.

UK Address Linked to Censured Firm

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

Both figures – citizens of Colombia in their 50s – are listed in records at the UK company registry as resident in the United Kingdom.

The firm is operational. The day after the US treasury imposed restrictions on those behind the recruitment network, Zeuz Global abruptly moved its registered address to the very heart of central London. Its updated address matches one five-star hotel in a central district.

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 key individuals the US government claims are orchestrating this mercenary supply have been able to establish a UK company based from a apartment in north London," said an expert, a researcher and former member of a UN panel on Sudan.

Questions Raised Over British Firm Checks

Experts argue the situation raises concerns over how people publicly sanctioned by the US for "contributing to the civil war in Sudan" were able to apparently set up and run a company in the UK capital.

The UK's top diplomat 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 questioned about Zeuz Global, the registry did not comment on whether it had knowledge of the firm’s operations or verify the residency status of the sanctioned individuals.

Reaching out to Zeuz was unsuccessful; its online site, set up in spring, was marked as "being built" with no contact details.

Operation Headed by Former Soldier

According to the American authorities, the figure at the heart 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 recruiting former Colombian soldiers to be sent to Sudan using a Bogotá-based employment agency. His spouse was also sanctioned for owning and managing the agency.

Another individual with two citizenships was similarly censured for managing a business alleged of processing money and payroll for the network employing the mercenaries.

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

Firm Establishment and Escalating Violence

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

Shortly after, the RSF assaulted the Zamzam camp for displaced people, killing over 1,500 civilians. After its capture, the site was transferred to Colombian mercenaries, who began preparations for assaulting El Fasher.

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

The two list Britain as their "place of residency".

Effect on the Conflict and Broader Concerns

The hiring of the Colombians has had a significant effect on the course of the war, experts state. These fighters have reportedly instructed minors to be combatants, as well as serving as marksmen, infantrymen, trainers, and pilots for drones.

These aircraft proved key in the capture of El Fasher and during fighting in surrounding areas.

"The war in Sudan is a technologically advanced one, with precision munitions and long-range drones causing regular fatalities," added the analyst. "These systems require external help to operate. We know that the recruitment network has been a major component of this external assistance."

He noted that the participation of sanctioned individuals in a UK company highlighted broader concerns over the absence of rigorous checks when companies are set up.

"Owning a UK company like this is a passport for bad actors 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 said that the recent introduction of "compulsory ID checks" for company directors would provide greater assurance about who was establishing and running UK companies.

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 admitted that he had trained children in Sudan and seen combat in El Fasher.

The United Arab Emirates, repeatedly alleged of supplying weapons to the RSF, has also been connected to the hiring of the contractors. A report alleged that Emirati business people supplying fighters to the RSF were linked to a senior UAE government official. The UAE has repeatedly rejected these claims.

A British government spokesperson said: "The UK is calling for an halt to violence, the protection of civilians, and the lifting of barriers to humanitarian access."

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