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

Tucked away near a shiny football stadium of Tottenham Hotspur in the British capital is a plain, nondescript block of flats. Behind its unremarkable beige brickwork exists a dark secret: a cramped second-floor apartment linked to deadly crimes unfolding a vast distance to the south.

Per British official documents, this apartment in north London is connected to a international web of firms implicated in the large-scale recruitment of fighters to fight in the African nation alongside militias charged of numerous atrocities and ethnic cleansing.

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 paramilitary group blamed for mass rapes, ethnic slaughter, and the systematic murder of civilians.

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

While accounts of violence mount, connections have been found between the mercenaries hired to overrun El Fasher and locations in the city of London.

London Flat Linked to Censured Company

The apartment in Tottenham is registered to a company named Zeuz Global, set up by two people identified and penalized recently by the American authorities for recruiting Colombian mercenaries to combat for the RSF.

Both figures – citizens of Colombia in their fifties – are listed in documents at Companies House as living in Britain.

The company is active. The day after the US treasury announced restrictions on those behind the recruitment network, Zeuz Global abruptly moved its official location to the very heart of central London. Its updated address corresponds to one five-star hotel in Covent Garden.

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

"This is of major concern that the primary figures the American authorities claims are directing this fighter recruitment have been able to establish a UK company based from a apartment in the capital," stated an expert, a analyst and former member of a UN panel on Sudan.

Concerns Voiced Over British Firm Oversight

Experts say the saga raises concerns over how people publicly sanctioned by the US for "fueling the conflict 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 group’s seizure of El Fasher. The RSF has been accused by the US with acts of genocide.

When questioned about Zeuz Global, the registry did not respond on whether it had knowledge of the company's activities or verify the location of the sanctioned individuals.

Contacting Zeuz was fruitless; its online site, set up in May, was marked as "being built" with no contact details.

Operation Headed by Retired Officer

According to the US treasury, the man at the heart of the South American recruitment operation for the RSF is a citizen of two countries and retired Colombian military officer located in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The US accuses this individual of having a key part in hiring former Colombian soldiers to be sent to Sudan using a Bogotá-based recruitment firm. His wife was also sanctioned for running the firm.

Another dual national was similarly censured for overseeing a company accused of handling funds and payroll for the operation hiring the mercenaries.

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

Firm Establishment and Intensifying Conflict

In April of the current year, the penalized figures set up a firm in north London called ODP8 Ltd – later renamed Zeuz Global.

Three days later, the RSF assaulted the Zamzam camp for displaced people, slaughtering over 1,500 civilians. After its capture, the camp was handed over to Colombian mercenaries, who began preparations for assaulting El Fasher.

The sanctioned individuals are named in official UK documents as owning "starting shares" in the company, with one identified as a key controller.

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

Effect on the War and Wider Issues

The hiring of the Colombians has had a profound impact on the trajectory of the conflict, analysts say. These nationals have allegedly instructed minors to be soldiers, as well as serving as marksmen, infantrymen, instructors, and operators for drones.

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

"The war in Sudan is a technologically advanced one, with guided weapons and remote aircraft causing daily civilian deaths," said the expert. "These weapons require outside assistance to operate. We know that the recruitment network has been a significant part of this outside support."

He noted that the involvement of sanctioned individuals in a UK company highlighted wider worries 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 establish a UK company," he said.

Government Response and Continuing Claims

A government source said that the recent introduction of "compulsory ID checks" for company directors would provide greater assurance about who was establishing and controlling UK companies.

The role of the South Americans in Sudan first emerged last year, prompting an apology 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 UAE, repeatedly alleged of supplying weapons to the RSF, has also been connected to the hiring of the contractors. A investigation alleged that Emirati business people supplying fighters to the RSF were connected to a senior UAE government official. The UAE has repeatedly rejected these allegations.

A UK official said: "The UK is demanding an immediate end to violence, the protection of civilians, and the lifting of obstacles to humanitarian access."

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