As combat erupts, a paramilitary faction in Sudan asserts possession of the presidential palace.

A Sudanese paramilitary group said it was in control of the presidential palace and other key sites in the country as tensions with the army erupted into open fighting. Witnesses reported fighting around the presidential palace and army headquarters in the capital Khartoum. The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) said they were responding to a surprise attack from the army on one of their bases. Sudan’s army said it was fighting the RSF in Khartoum, accusing the group of “traitorous plotting” against the country. Talks have been under way on integrating the RSF into the army as part of the move towards the return of civilian rule, but there are tensions over who would be the senior partner in the merger.

The US ambassador to Sudan said he was sheltering amid the clashes in the capital. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the situation in Khartoum is “fragile” when asked by a reporter to comment during a presser in Vietnam.