Sudan turmoil live: 39 hospitals bombed out of service

Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) shared a video on Saturday that they said showed Egyptian troops who had "surrendered" to them in Merowe, northern Sudan.

There was no clear explanation for the presence of Egyptian troops in Merowe, but Egyptian and Sudanese troops have periodically staged joint military exercises in the north of the country in the wake of diplomatic tensions with Ethiopia.

The video showed a number of men dressed in army fatigues crouched on the ground and speaking to troops in RSF uniforms in an Egyptian Arabic dialect.

Middle East Eye could not immediately verify the footage and Egyptian authorities did not immediately make any public comment on the matter.

Sudan's army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan has said his forces are in control of the presidential palace, the military headquarters and the airport.

Burhan made the comments to Al Jazeera Arabic following a live phone interview the broadcaster aired with the RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, who claimed his forces had seized the three strategic sites.

Burhan and Daglo, also known as Hemeti, have maintained an uneasy alliance since a October 2021 coup.

Hemeti, who was once head of the notorious Janjaweed militias in Darfur, has influential supporters in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.

Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have called on all parties in Sudan to exercise restraint, de-escalate and work towards ending the crisis through dialogue.

Qatar's Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it looks forward to all parties adopting dialogue and peaceful ways to overcome their differences. 

Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed "deep concern" over the clashes and called on the country's political leaders to exercise the language of "dialogue, wisdom and self-restraint."

Meanwhile, the UAE embassy in Khartoum called on the parties to de-escalate and work towards finding a peaceful solution to the crisis.

The spokesman for Sudan's armed forces has said the army will respond to any "irresponsible" actions, as its forces clashed with the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces in several parts of the capital Khartoum and the country.

Brigadier-General Nabil Abdallah told Al Jazeera Mubasher that some politicians had been trying to politicise the military. 

He also said that RSF troops had a heavy presence at the headquarters of the state television station.

The Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki Mahmat, has called on all parties in Sudan to end the "bloodshed in the last ten days of Ramadan." 

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has urged Sudan's army and paramilitary groups to end fighting "immediately."

The top US diplomat said he was "deeply concerned" about reports of fighting and said all US embassy staff in the capital Khartoum were "accounted for."

"We urge all actors to stop the violence immediately and avoid further escalations or troop mobilisations and continue talks to resolve outstanding issues," he tweeted.

For months, tensions have been rising between the military and a powerful paramilitary group known as the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

The situation escalated dramatically on Saturday with gunfire and explosions rocking the capital.

Fighting has been focused in strategic areas, like the Presidential Palace, military headquarters and the public broadcaster.

With both sides blaming each other for the escalation, Middle East Eye breaks down how we reached this point.

Read our story here.

Nisrin Elamin, an Assistant Professor of Anthropology and African Studies at the University of Toronto, is currently in Sudan and spoke to Middle East Eye about the fast moving situation on the ground.

"I am in Khartoum, north Bahri close to a Rapid Support Forces (RSF) compound, sheltering in place with my parents and 3-year-old. We can hear heavy gunfire between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the RSF," she told MEE.

"The electricity is out and the internet will likely get shut down soon too."

Fierce clashes broke out between Sudan's military and the powerful RSF early on Saturday, raising fears of a wider conflict in the chaos-stricken country.

In a series of statements, the RSF accused the army of attacking its forces at one of its bases in south Khartoum. They have since claimed to have seized the the seat of the country’s presidency and capital's airport.

"Thinking of all the people in Khartoum and Sudan who cannot shelter in a place, who live in structures that do not provide much shelter from this shit show," said Elamin.

"Tensions between the RSF and the SAF have been brewing for a while. Many predicted that fighting could break out. This is a power struggle for political control and it is the people of Sudan who have long been demanding a full transition to civilian rule, who are suffering the consequences of this power struggle," she added.

The head of the United Nations mission in Sudan has called for an "immediate" end to fighting between the regular army and paramilitaries.

UNITAMS chief Volker Perthes "strongly condemns the eruption of fighting in Sudan," it said in a statement.

"Perthes has reached out to both parties asking them for an immediate cessation of fighting to ensure the safety of the Sudanese people and to spare the country from further violence."

At least three civilians have been killed in the Sudanese capital as clashes rage between the army and a powerful paramilitary force.

According to a statement issued by the Sudan Doctors Committee - a part of the country's pro-democracy movement - the clashes resulted in at least three deaths and several people being wounded.

The military also said the fighting resulted in a number of casualties but provided no further details.

Saudi Arabia's state-owned airline Saudia said one of its Airbus aircrafts "had an accident" at Sudan's Khartoum airport before its scheduled departure to Riyadh on Saturday.

Saudia also said in a statement that its flights to and from Sudan had been suspended until further notice.

Sudan's paramilitary commander has vowed that his fighters will keep on fighting until "all army bases are captured." 

"We will not stop fighting until we capture all the army bases and the honourable members of the armed forces join us," Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, who is better known as Hemeti, told Al Jazeera Mubasher. 

Fighting has raged since early Saturday between the army and Hemeti's Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

The commander of the powerful Sudanese paramilitary group, the RSF, said army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan will either be handed over authorities to face justice or be killed.

In an explosive interview with Al Jazeera Mubasher on Saturday, Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, who is better known as Hemeti, lashed out at Burhan and accused army leaders of seeking to carry out a coup.

Hemeti and Burhan have maintained an uneasy alliance since an October 2021 coup led by Burhan, which saw the military replace Sudan's transitional civilian-led government. 

The two men have different sources of power and wealth, as well as different international sponsors. 

But the latest tensions between the army and the RSF have been rooted in the integration of the paramilitary into the military, and disagreements over what authority should oversee the process.

The commander of Sudan's powerful paramilitary Rapid Support Forces,  the RSF, said his troops were forced into a confrontation with the Sudanese army due to the actions of the military.

Speaking to Al Jazeera Mubasher on Saturday, Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, who is better known as Hemeti, said he was forced into a corner and accused the army, led by army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, of carrying out a coup.

Gunfire could be heard at the headquarters of Sudan's state TV while an anchor appeared briefly on screen.

Heavy gunfire and blasts were reported in the Khartoum on Saturday following days of tension between the army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a powerful paramilitary group.