Gaza Herald – A confidential United Nations report submitted to the Security Council establishes conclusively that the United Arab Emirates hired Colombian mercenaries to fight for Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The document, obtained by Middle East Eye, details how Global Security Services Group (GSSG), a UAE-based firm with close government ties, moved these fighters into Sudan through Libya, Somalia, and Chad.
Investigators demonstrate that the UAE-linked Puntland Maritime Police Force base in Bosaso, Somalia, served as a transit and training site for the mercenaries before their deployment. Arms and supplies reached the RSF through territory controlled by the Haftar family in Libya, then across Ethiopia, Chad, and breakaway Somali regions with Emirati ties. The UAE and involved entities have denied wrongdoing, though the foreign ministry did not respond to requests for comment on this update.
The fourth quarterly update of the UN Panel of Experts on Sudan marks the first time investigators explicitly link the UAE to the mercenaries’ operations. In a letter included in the leaked report, the UAE rejected allegations of wrongdoing regarding the Sudan conflict, stating it takes mercenary accusations seriously. However, the evidence presents a significant challenge for Abu Dhabi.
According to the report, the Colombian mercenaries played a significant role in RSF military operations in Darfur, particularly during the siege and capture of el-Fasher. They provided combat and technical support, including drone operation, artillery, and infantry assistance. Victims told Middle East Eye that RSF fighters raped, executed, and extorted civilians during the operation, which lasted more than 500 days.
UN investigators confirmed that the mercenaries were trained in Abu Dhabi, Ghayathi, and al-Wathba within the UAE, as well as at the PMPF base in Bosaso. The report states that the UAE military financed, trained, and supervised the PMPF. This evidence emerges as Lana Nusseibeh, the UAE’s candidate for UN secretary-general, faces scrutiny over her country’s involvement in the war that began in April 2023.
Babiker al-Siddig al-Amin, Sudan’s ambassador to the UK, warned that Nusseibeh’s candidacy should not be used to whitewash UAE support for the RSF. He stated that those with blood on their hands should not lead international institutions, adding that her success would be a blow to UN credibility. Nusseibeh has previously denied reports of Emirati involvement but recently told Politico she supports accountability for RSF atrocities.
The UN is set to install a successor to Antonio Guterres by year-end. While Costa Rica’s Rebeca Grynspan leads straw polls, the UAE remains a strategic ally and major investor in the US, France, and the UK. President Donald Trump has rejected previous Latin American candidates, citing concerns over globalist agendas, leaving the race open to various diplomatic contenders.
This report was produced in the Gaza Herald newsroom.
