Civilians flee Khartoum as ceasefire fails to hold

Army and RSF accuse the other of breaking deal as death toll mounts in Sudanese capital and remote regions

Thousands of Khartoum residents fled on Wednesday as fighting continued across the city for a fifth day after a US-brokered ceasefire between the army and paramilitary forces failed to hold.

Continuous shelling, automatic rifle fire and loud blasts shook the centre of Sudan’s capital from first light, with fighting apparently concentrated around the defence ministry compound and the airport. Thick smoke billowed into the sky over Khartoum’s twin city of Omdurman, where street battles continued around the state television building.