{
  "id": 18594282,
  "title": "UN Says United Arab Emirates Hired Colombian Mercenaries to Fight in Sudan",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/06/un-says-united-arab-emirates-hired-colombian-mercenaries-to-fight-in",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-11-06T23:41:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Colombia One",
    "slug": "colombia-one",
    "url": "https://colombiaone.com/2026/11/06/un-says-united-arab-emirates-hired-colombian-mercenaries-to-fight-in-sudan/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The United Nations Independent International Mission has revealed a troubling link between the United Arab Emirates and Colombian mercenaries fighting in Sudan. The report, presented before the UN Security Council, confirms that Colombian mercenaries are indeed working alongside the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the African country. However, it adds that the UAE has hired these mercenaries, a fact that has been previously discussed but never conclusively proven.\n\nThe RSF, suspected of committing genocide and war crimes, is a militia that has been accused of prolonging the conflict in Sudan through various forms of support. The UN report states that external actors, including the UAE, are providing weapons, military equipment, financial and logistical support, and foreign fighters to sustain the military operations in Sudan. This support has led to increasingly sophisticated capabilities, such as the use of drones, which have been used to attack civilian areas, including hospitals, schools, markets, and displacement sites.\n\nThe report also highlights the existence of a transnational network supplying the RSF with weapons, fighters, training, and logistical support. Evidence suggests that Colombian mercenaries, recruited, trained, and deployed by the UAE, have played a significant role in this network. Witnesses and documentary evidence point to key entities in Colombia and the UAE being involved in recruitment, contracting, transportation, and deployment of Colombian contractors in Sudan.\n\nThe war in Sudan began in April 2023 when the Army and the RSF broke their alliance over the integration of the paramilitaries into the Armed Forces. The country is currently divided, with the Army controlling Khartoum and the RSF controlling most of Darfur. The UN estimates that tens of thousands have been killed, with around 13 million people forced to flee their homes. The United States previously determined that the RSF had committed genocide, a claim supported by the UN report.",
  "summary": "A recent report by the United Nations Independent International Mission confirmed something that had already been repeatedly discussed: Colombian mercenaries were fighting in Sudan alongside the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). But it added something for which there had been no clear information: that the United Arab Emirates has hired these mercenaries. The serious aspect […]",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Middle East Eye",
        "title": "Leaked UN report 'establishes conclusively' that UAE hired Colombian mercenaries for Sudan's RSF",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/06/leaked-un-report-establishes-conclusively-that-uae-hired-colombian",
        "published": "2026-11-06T16:05:17.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}