MUSCAT/KHARTOUM: Oman urged Sudan rivals maximum restraint and resort to dialogue to arrive at political settlement to protect the lives of Sudanese people and ensure peace as clashes broke out between Sudan's main paramilitary group and the regular armed forces in Khartoum and elsewhere in the country on Saturday in an apparent struggle for control.
The army rejected assertions by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) that they had seized the presidential palace, the army chief's residence and airports in Khartoum and the northern city of Merowe.
In a statement, Oman's Foreign Ministry said that it is following with great concern the ongoing developments in Sudan after clashes broke out in the country.
Sudanese army chief General Abdel Fattah al Burhan's comments to Al Jazeera TV followed a live phone interview the station aired with the commander of the RSF, who said his forces had seized the strategic sites.
The situation on the ground was unclear.
The RSF said the army had attacked it first, while the army said it was fighting the RSF at sites the paramilitaries said they had taken.
A major confrontation between the RSF and the army could plunge Sudan into widespread conflict as it struggles with economic breakdown and tribal violence, and could also derail efforts to move towards elections.
The clashes follow rising tensions between the army and the RSF over the RSF's integration into the military. The disagreement has delayed the signing of an internationally-backed agreement with political parties on a transition to democracy.
Civilian forces that signed a draft version of that agreement in December called on Saturday for an immediate halt to hostilities by both the army and the RSF. Brigadier General Nabil Abdallah said there was a heavy presence of RSF troops at the TV headquarters in Khartoum.
The rift between the forces came to the surface on Thursday when the army said recent movements by the RSF, particularly in Merowe, were illegal.
The RSF, which together with the army overthrew Bashir four years ago, began redeploying units in Khartoum and elsewhere amid talks last month on its integration into the military under a transition plan that would lead to new elections. — ONA/Reuters
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