Phone tracking shows how Colombian mercenaries backed Sudan's RSF - report

Phone tracking shows how Colombian mercenaries backed Sudan's RSF - report38 minutes agoShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleBarabra Plett UsherAfrica correspondentGetty ImagesThe report says more than 50 mobile phones were tracked in Sudan between April 2025 and January this year whose operators were ColombianA network of Colombian mercenaries backed by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) provided critical support to Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) enabling it to capture the western city of el-Fasher last year, a new report says.The investigation, by security analysis organisation the Conflict Insights Group (CIG), used data obtained from tracking the mobile phones of the Colombian fighters.The UAE has long denied supporting the RSF, which has been fighting Sudan's regular army for three years.El-Fasher's fall was one of the most brutal chapters of the conflict, which has led to the world's worst humanitarian crisis with tens of thousands killed and millions forced from their homes.The CIG has been closely following evidence of extensive Emirati military assistance to the RSF, but "this is the first research where we can prove UAE involvement with certainty", says director Justin Lynch."We are making public what governments have long known - that there is a direct link between Abu Dhabi and the RSF."A simple guide to what is happening in SudanThe devastating conflict where both sides have reasons to keep fightingThe report "shows mercenaries involved with drones travelling from a UAE base to Sudan before the RSF takeover of el-Fasher", he says."Mercenaries involved in drone operations even named their wi-fi network their unit name - linked to a company operated out of the UAE."Colombian President Gustavo Petro was quoted last year as calling the mercenaries "spectres of death" and describing their recruitment as a "form of human trafficking".The BBC has asked for a respons...