South American Mercenaries in Sudan Allegedly Recruited by UK-Registered Firms

Tucked away near a gleaming football stadium of Tottenham Hotspur in the British capital lies a squat, unremarkable block of flats. Beyond its unremarkable beige brickwork lies a dark reality: a cramped second-floor apartment linked to murderous atrocities unfolding a vast distance to the south.

According to British official documents, this one-bedroom flat in north London is connected to a transnational web of firms involved in the mass hiring of mercenaries to fight in the African nation alongside militias accused of numerous war crimes and genocide.

Hundreds of Ex- South American Soldiers Enlisted

Hundreds of former Colombian military personnel have been recruited to serve with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a armed faction responsible for mass rapes, ethnic slaughter, and the systematic murder of civilians.

These contractors were key participants in the paramilitaries’ capture of the western Sudanese city of El Fasher in late October, which sparked a killing frenzy that analysts say has claimed at least 60,000 lives.

While reports of violence increase, connections have been identified between the fighters hired to overrun El Fasher and locations in the city of London.

UK Address Connected to Censured Company

The apartment in Tottenham is listed to a corporation called Zeuz Global, established by two people identified and sanctioned recently by the American authorities for hiring contractors to fight for the RSF.

Both individuals – Colombian nationals in their fifties – are described in records at Companies House as resident in the United Kingdom.

The firm remains operational. The following day the US treasury imposed restrictions on those running the recruitment network, Zeuz Global suddenly relocated its registered address to the very heart of London. Its new postcode matches a luxury accommodation in a central district.

Both hotels stated they had no connection to Zeuz Global and were unaware why the firm had used their addresses.

"It is of major concern that the primary figures the American authorities states are orchestrating this mercenary supply have been able to set up a UK company based from a flat in the capital," said Mike Lewis, a analyst and former member of a United Nations group on Sudan.

Questions Raised Over UK Company Oversight

Experts say the saga raises questions over how people publicly sanctioned by the US for "contributing to the civil war in Sudan" were able to seemingly establish and operate a firm in the British capital.

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

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

Contacting Zeuz was fruitless; its website, set up in spring, was marked as "under construction" with lacking information.

Operation Headed by Former Soldier

According to the US treasury, the figure at the centre of the Colombian recruiting network for the RSF is a dual Colombian-Italian national and retired Colombian military officer located in the Gulf state.

The US accuses this individual of playing a central role in hiring ex-military personnel to be deployed to Sudan using a Bogotá-based employment agency. His wife was also sanctioned for owning and managing the agency.

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

"In 2024 and 2025, companies in America linked with this individual engaged in many bank transactions, amounting to many millions of US dollars," the US treasury statement read.

Firm Establishment and Escalating Violence

In April of this year, the penalized figures registered a company in north London called ODP8 Ltd – later renamed Zeuz Global.

Three days later, the RSF assaulted the Zamzam camp for displaced people, slaughtering more than 1,500 innocent people. After its seizure, the site was transferred to the hired fighters, who began planning for attacking El Fasher.

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

The two list Britain as their "country of residence".

Effect on the War and Broader Concerns

The hiring of the Colombians has had a profound impact on the trajectory of the conflict, experts state. These nationals have reportedly instructed minors to be combatants, as well as serving as snipers, infantrymen, trainers, and operators for unmanned aircraft.

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

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

He noted that the involvement of sanctioned individuals in a London firm highlighted wider worries over the lack of strict vetting when firms are established.

"Having a UK company like this is a passport for criminals to do business with respectable entities. It's still harder to join a gym in most cases than to establish a UK company," he stated.

Official Reaction and Continuing Claims

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 companies.

The role of the South Americans in Sudan first came to light last year, leading to an expression of regret from the South American nation's government.

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

The United Arab Emirates, repeatedly alleged of arming the RSF, has also been linked to the hiring of the contractors. A report alleged that Emirati business people supplying Colombians to the RSF were linked to a senior UAE government official. The UAE has consistently denied these allegations.

A UK official commented: "The UK is demanding an immediate end to violence, the safety of civilians, and the lifting of barriers to aid delivery."

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