Heavy gunfire heard in Sudan’s capital Khartoum

Heavy gunfire has been heard in Sudan’s capital Khartoum following days of tension between the army and a powerful paramilitary group.

The source of the gunfire was not immediately known. Shooting was heard in the vicinity of Sudan’s army headquarters and the defence ministry in central Khartoum.

Columns of smoke emanated from various places in the city and soldiers were deployed on the streets.

Witnesses reported “confrontations” and loud explosions and gunfire near a base held by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces in south Khartoum.

Al Jazeera’s Hiba Morgan, reporting from Khartoum, said fighting was ongoing.

“Now the Rapid Support Forces say they were attacked by the Sudanese armed forces in the early hours of April 15. We are hearing gunfire in the capital near the vicinity of the presidential palace in the northern part of the capital, as well as in Soba,” said Morgan.

The rift between the forces came to the surface on Thursday when the army said recent movements by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) – a powerful paramilitary group – had happened without coordination and were illegal.

On Friday and early on Saturday, the heads of both the army and RSF told mediators they were ready to take steps to de-escalate the situation.

A confrontation between them could spell prolonged strife across a vast country already dealing with economic breakdown and flare-ups of tribal violence.