Hiiraan Online

Footage shared by a Colombian mercenary operating in Sudan shows a soldier with a machine gun. Photograph: The Guardian 

Bosaso (HOL) — A military base operated by the United Arab Emirates in the Somali port city of Bosaso is being used as a transit point for Colombian mercenaries fighting in Sudan’s civil war, according to a joint investigation by The Guardian and Colombian outlet La Silla Vacía.

The report found that former Colombian soldiers were recruited on private security contracts and routed through the Horn of Africa to join the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a powerful paramilitary group accused of atrocities in Sudan’s Darfur region. One Colombian fighter, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said his journey began in Bogotá, where he signed a $2,600-per-month contract. He was flown to Ethiopia and later transferred to a UAE-controlled base in Bosaso before being deployed to Nyala in Sudan’s Darfur region.

The UAE has long faced accusations of backing and arming the RSF, though Abu Dhabi has denied involvement in the conflict. However, multiple investigations indicate Bosaso’s strategic role in Emirati regional operations. Satellite imagery published in April 2025 showed large cargo aircraft parked at Bosaso Airport, fueling concerns that the site had become a logistical node for the RSF. The Bosaso facility, originally built by the UAE as a training center for Puntland’s maritime police, is now believed to be a fully Emirati-controlled base with limited oversight from Somali authorities.

In a separate development, open-source intelligence analysts reported spotting an Israeli-manufactured ELM-2084 Multi-Mission Radar near the same facility earlier this year. The system, developed by Israel’s ELTA Systems and capable of tracking over 1,000 targets, was likely installed by the UAE without the knowledge of either Somalia’s federal government or Puntland’s parliament. Sources told HOL that Puntland President Said Abdullahi Deni authorized the radar deployment under a confidential agreement with Abu Dhabi.

The revelations coincide with evidence of a wider Emirati strategy to expand influence across the Horn of Africa. Security analysts described Abu Dhabi’s creation of an “axis of secessionists”, a network of local strongmen and autonomous regions such as Somaliland and Puntland, leveraged to project Emirati power while sidestepping central governments. That report detailed how the UAE cultivated regional alliances through port deals, private security firms, and financial networks to gain strategic depth from Libya to Yemen and Somalia.

It also spotlights the UAE’s expanding military footprint across the Horn of Africa, including installations stretching from Yemen’s Socotra archipelago to Berbera in Somaliland and Bosaso in Puntland.

Colombian officials have acknowledged that hundreds of former soldiers have been hired by private firms linked to conflicts abroad, with some reportedly training RSF recruits, including minors, according to La Silla Vacía.

The revelations have raised new questions about Somalia’s sovereignty and the extent to which its territory may be used for foreign military operations.

The Somali federal government and Puntland’s administration have not commented on the allegations, and the UAE has yet to issue a formal response.

Sudan’s war erupted in April 2023 between the RSF, led by Gen. Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti), and the Sudanese Armed Forces under Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan. The conflict has displaced millions, caused widespread famine, and prompted renewed scrutiny of foreign actors accused of prolonging the fighting.