KAMPALA — Fresh investigative reports have laid bare the extent of foreign military intervention in Sudan’s devastating war, revealing that the United Arab Emirates and Libya funnelled support to the Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group through a network of Colombian mercenaries — escalating what has become one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.
The Conflict Insights Group (CIG), a specialised research organisation tracking armed conflicts, released findings this week documenting how Colombian military contractors were deployed to bolster RSF operations, providing expertise in drone warfare, logistics and intelligence that significantly strengthened the paramilitary’s battlefield capabilities.
The revelation adds a dangerous new dimension to a conflict that began in April 2023 when tensions between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the RSF erupted into open warfare. The war has since killed tens of thousands, displaced millions and pushed Sudan into a state of near-total collapse, with famine now confirmed in multiple regions.
A Shadow War Within a War
According to the CIG report, Colombian contractors — many with backgrounds in that country’s long-running internal conflict — were recruited through Libyan intermediaries, creating a chain of plausible deniability that obscured the true origins of the military support. The UAE’s role as a financial backer of the RSF has been widely suspected, but the mercenary angle provides a more direct paper trail linking outside powers to the paramilitary’s campaign.
Libya, itself fractured by years of civil war, has served as a convenient transshipment point for weapons and personnel entering Sudan. The country’s multiple armed factions have long hired out their services to foreign buyers, and the Sudanese conflict has attracted mercenaries from across the world.
"This is not simply about one side getting weapons," said one regional analyst who requested anonymity. "This is about professionalising a paramilitary force — giving it capabilities it would not otherwise have. The RSF already had numbers and brutality. Now it has technical expertise too."
The Human Cost
The consequences of continued foreign meddling in Sudan have been catastrophic for civilians. The war has created the world’s largest displacement crisis, with over eight million people forced from their homes. Hunger is rampant across vast stretches of the country, and aid organisations have struggled to reach those in need as both sides restrict access to humanitarian convoys.
The RSF has been accused of widespread atrocities, including systematic sexual violence, targeted attacks on civilian infrastructure and ethnically motivated massacres. The paramilitary has repeatedly denied these accusations, though documentary evidence compiled by international organisations has been mounting.
Fighting has extended beyond Sudan’s borders. The conflict has spilled into Chad, where cross-border raids and militia activity have destabilised the eastern provinces, creating a secondary humanitarian emergency. South Sudan, already fragile, has also seen spillover effects as refugees stream across its borders.
Diplomatic Silence
Despite the mounting evidence of foreign intervention, the international community has remained largely muted. The UAE has denied directly supporting the RSF, while the Libyan factions involved have offered no official comment. Western governments have issued statements of concern but have stopped short of targeted sanctions against those supplying the paramilitary.
Some analysts argue that the war in Sudan has become a proxy battleground for broader regional competition, with Gulf states, Egypt and various non-state actors all pursuing objectives through armed groups on the ground. That complexity has made diplomatic pressure difficult to coordinate.
"There are too many players with interests in this conflict," said another researcher tracking the war. "Every outside actor has a reason to keep the war going."
A Conflict With No End in Sight
Three years on, the war shows no signs of abating. Both the Sudanese military, led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the RSF, commanded by General Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, have repeatedly failed to agree to ceasefires. Peace talks brokered by the United States and Saudi Arabia collapsed last year, and subsequent efforts have failed to bring the two sides back to the table.
For civilians caught between the fighting, the situation remains desperate. Aid agencies warn that without a political solution, Sudan faces an extended period of suffering with no relief in sight. The arrival of foreign mercenaries on the battlefield only deepens concerns that the war will intensify rather than resolve.
As the international community debates responses, millions of Sudanese continue to flee, shelter and survive in the shadow of a conflict that has already reshaped the map of East Africa.