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

Situated near the shiny football stadium of Tottenham Hotspur in London lies a plain, unremarkable apartment building. Behind its ordinary facade lies a dark reality: a small flat linked to deadly crimes taking place thousands of miles to the south.

Per British official documents, this one-bedroom flat in the capital is connected to a international network of companies implicated in the mass recruitment of fighters to fight in Sudan alongside militias charged of numerous atrocities and ethnic cleansing.

Hundreds of Former South American Soldiers Recruited

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

These contractors were directly involved in the paramilitaries’ seizure of the south-western Sudanese city of El Fasher in late October, which sparked a killing frenzy that experts believe has claimed at least 60,000 lives.

While accounts of atrocities increase, links have been identified between the fighters contracted to overrun El Fasher and addresses in the city of London.

London Flat Linked to Censured Firm

The apartment in north London is listed to a corporation called Zeuz Global, established by two individuals identified and penalized last week by the American authorities for recruiting Colombian mercenaries to combat for the RSF.

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

The firm is active. The day after the US treasury imposed sanctions on those running the Colombian mercenary operation, Zeuz Global suddenly relocated its registered address to the centre of central London. Its updated address corresponds to one five-star hotel in Covent Garden.

Both hotels said they had no link to Zeuz Global and had no idea why the company had used their postcodes.

"It is of major concern that the key individuals the US government states are directing this mercenary supply have been able to establish a UK company operating from a flat in north London," said Mike Lewis, a researcher and former member of a UN panel on Sudan.

Questions Raised Over UK Company Checks

Analysts argue the situation 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 UK capital.

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

When asked about the company, Companies House did not comment on whether it had knowledge of the firm’s activities or verify the location of the penalized people.

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

Operation Led by Retired Officer

According to the US treasury, the figure at the centre of the South American recruitment operation for the RSF is a citizen of two countries and former army officer based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The US accuses this individual of playing a central role in recruiting former Colombian soldiers to be deployed to Sudan using a Bogotá-based recruitment firm. His wife was also sanctioned for running the firm.

Another dual national was similarly censured for managing a business accused of processing money and salaries for the network hiring the Colombian fighters.

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

Firm Establishment and Intensifying Conflict

In April of the current year, the sanctioned individuals registered a company in north London named ODP8 Ltd – later re-branded Zeuz Global.

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

The sanctioned individuals are listed in Companies House records as holding "initial shareholdings" in the company, with one named as a key controller.

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

Effect on the War and Wider Issues

The hiring of the Colombians has had a profound impact on the course of the war, analysts say. These fighters have reportedly instructed minors to be soldiers, as well as serving as snipers, foot soldiers, trainers, and pilots for drones.

These drones proved key 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 fatalities," said the analyst. "These weapons require external help to operate. We know that the recruitment network has been a significant part of this external assistance."

He added that the participation of penalized persons in a UK company underlined broader concerns over the absence of rigorous checks when companies are set up.

"Having a UK company like this is a passport for bad actors to do business with legitimate counterparts. It's still harder to join a fitness centre 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 setting up and running UK companies.

The role of the South Americans in Sudan first emerged last year, leading to an expression of regret from Colombia’s foreign ministry.

One of the fighters recently admitted that he had trained children in Sudan and fought in El Fasher.

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

A UK official commented: "The UK is calling for an immediate end to atrocities, the protection of civilians, and the lifting of obstacles to humanitarian access."

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