Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) report that they have taken control of the Sudanese presidential palace, but the country's army denies this and says that there are already deserters in the ranks of the rival units.

According to Reuters news agency on Saturday morning, in addition to taking control of the presidential palace, Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) said they had taken control of the army chief's residence and Khartoum's international airport, as clashes with the army erupted.

In a statement, the RSF accused the army of having attacked first and said it had taken control of the airports in the town of Merowe and El-Obeid, in the north and west of the country respectively.

However, earlier this afternoon (15.04), the Sudanese army denied that the paramilitary group controls the Presidential Palace and said that there are already deserters in the ranks of the rival units.

"The Rapid Support Forces spread false news from outside Sudan and claimed control of the General Command and the Palace of the Republic," the Sudanese Armed Forces said in a statement quoted by Lusa.

According to the army, the Sudanese air force is conducting operations against the RSF. Footage from local broadcasters showed military planes in the skies over Khartoum, but Reuters was unable to independently confirm the material.

A journalist from the same agency reports seeing cannons and armored vehicles deployed in the streets, as well as hearing heavy gunfire near the army and RSF headquarters.

The doctors' union says that three civilians were killed.

The army also said that the RSF had tried to attack its troops in several positions, after witnesses reported heavy gunfire in multiple parts of the country, raising fears of the outbreak of conflict.

In contrast, the RSF, which some analysts consider to be much stronger, said that their forces had been attacked first by the army.

Led by the militia's former leader, General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, better known as Hemedti, the RSF also claimed that the army had surrounded one of its bases and opened fire with weapons.

Today, the UN and the European Union (EU) condemned the conflict, and the British embassy in Sudan urged its nationals to stay indoors, saying it would monitor the situation closely.

The Russian embassy in the African country also said today that it was concerned about an "escalation of violence" and called for a ceasefire and negotiations, saying that the atmosphere in the capital Khartoum was tense, "but that Russian diplomats were safe".

However, the Sudanese Army today denied that the paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces (RSF) controls the Presidential Palace and said that there are already deserters in the ranks of the rival units.

"The Rapid Support Forces spread false news from outside Sudan and claimed control of the General Command and the Palace of the Republic," the Sudanese Armed Forces said in a statement.

Earlier, the Sudanese paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces (RSF) announced that it had taken control of the Presidential Palace in Khartoum after clashes with the army.

The information was released in a statement also quoted by the US news agency AP, which warned that independent confirmation of the paramilitary group's claims was impossible.

Source: Reuters