South American Contractors in Sudan Reportedly Recruited by UK-Registered Firms

Tucked away near a shiny football stadium of Tottenham Hotspur in the British capital lies a plain, unremarkable block of flats. Behind its ordinary beige brickwork exists a dark secret: a cramped second-floor apartment connected to murderous atrocities taking place thousands of miles to the south.

Per British official documents, this one-bedroom flat in north London is connected to a international web of firms implicated in the mass recruitment of mercenaries to fight in Sudan alongside paramilitaries charged of myriad war crimes and ethnic cleansing.

Scores of Ex- South American Soldiers Recruited

A large number of former Colombian military personnel have been enlisted to fight with Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a paramilitary group blamed for mass rapes, targeted killings, 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 killing frenzy that analysts say has claimed at least 60,000 lives.

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

London Flat Connected to Sanctioned Firm

The apartment in Tottenham is listed to a company named Zeuz Global, established by two people named and sanctioned recently by the American authorities for recruiting Colombian mercenaries to fight for the RSF.

Both individuals – Colombian nationals in their fifties – are listed in records at the UK company registry as living in Britain.

The company remains active. The following day the United States announced sanctions on those behind the Colombian mercenary operation, Zeuz Global suddenly relocated its registered address to the very heart of central London. Its updated address corresponds to a luxury accommodation in a central district.

The establishments in question stated they had no link to Zeuz Global and had no idea why the company had listed their postcodes.

"It is of major concern that the primary figures the US government claims are orchestrating this fighter recruitment have been able to establish a UK company operating from a apartment in the capital," said an expert, a analyst and former member of a United Nations group on Sudan.

Concerns Voiced Over British Firm Oversight

Analysts say the situation raises questions over how individuals openly censured by the US for "fueling the civil war in Sudan" were able to seemingly establish and operate a firm in the UK capital.

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

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

Reaching out to Zeuz proved fruitless; its website, created in May, was marked as "being built" with no contact details.

Network Headed by Retired Officer

Per the US treasury, the man at the heart of the South American recruitment operation for the RSF is a dual Colombian-Italian national and former army officer located in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The US accuses this individual of having a central role in recruiting former Colombian soldiers to be deployed to Sudan using a Colombian recruitment firm. His wife was also sanctioned for owning and managing the firm.

Another dual national was similarly censured for overseeing a company alleged of processing money and payroll for the operation employing the Colombian fighters.

"In 2024 and 2025, companies in America linked with this individual conducted many wire transfers, totalling many millions of US dollars," the US treasury statement said.

Company Registration and Intensifying Conflict

In spring of the current year, the penalized figures set up a firm in the UK capital called 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 site was transferred to Colombian mercenaries, who began planning for attacking El Fasher.

The sanctioned individuals are listed in Companies House records as holding "initial shareholdings" in the company, with one identified as a person of "significant control".

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

Effect on the War and Wider Issues

The recruitment of the South Americans has had a significant effect on the trajectory of the conflict, experts state. These fighters have reportedly instructed minors to be combatants, as well as serving as marksmen, foot soldiers, trainers, and operators for unmanned aircraft.

These aircraft were key in the fall of El Fasher and during fighting in surrounding areas.

"The war in Sudan is a technologically advanced one, with precision munitions and remote aircraft causing daily fatalities," said the expert. "These weapons require outside assistance 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 London firm 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 more difficult to join a gym in most cases than to establish a UK company," he said.

Official Reaction and Ongoing Allegations

A government source stated that the new rollout of "compulsory ID checks" for corporate officers would provide more confidence 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 Colombia’s foreign ministry.

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

The United Arab Emirates, long accused of arming the RSF, has also been linked to the hiring 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 repeatedly rejected these claims.

A British government spokesperson commented: "The UK is calling for an halt to violence, the protection of non-combatants, and the lifting of obstacles to aid delivery."

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