At least 25 killed in clashes between Sudan forces

The Sudan Central Doctors Board is urging citizens to avoid going out into the streets, onto rooftops or into open spaces during "the increase in clashes and expansion into neighborhoods, cities and buildings."

The board said there is a "very large number" of injured people being counted.

"There are a large number of wounded people who are still detained because of the clashes. We appeal to all forces to stop the clashes immediately and open a safe passage for the injured to receive medical attention," it said.

The group recommended some steps in case of a gunfire wound, including moving anyone who has been injured away from windows or open spaces and pressing directly on a wound to stop bleeding.

The head of Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), Gen. Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, called Sudan’s military leader Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan a "criminal" in an interview with broadcaster Al Jazeera on Saturday.

With both sides trading accusations, Dagalo — who is known as Hemedti — blamed the Sudanese military for instigating the conflict.  

He claimed his forces were drawn into a confrontation with Sudan's military following tension surrounding recent negotiations related to restoring a civilian government.

Hemedti said the RSF and other groups involved in negotiations were ready to sit down with al-Burhan on Friday night "and reach an agreement," but then "all of a sudden, we saw many forces encircled our forces in the camps, streets and closed bridges." 

"They attacked us, they hit us, and then we had to fight back after they encircled us," he said, adding that his group is not located in the capital of Khartoum.

"The RSF is now carrying out the sovereignty of the people, the real democratic change, equality for the Sudanese people," he said. "We say to the Sudanese people: We are sorry about this battle but we want those who are at home to stay at home, and the battle will put an end to this in the coming few days." 

What Sudan's military leader says: Meanwhile, al-Burhan, who lives inside the army headquarters, claimed he "was surprised" by the RSF attack on his house on Saturday morning. The army accused the paramilitary group of "traitorous plotting" and has said it is fighting back.

Some background: The two men were bound together by a 2021 coup and the prior toppling of ousted Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir — plus their involvement in Russia’s exploitation of Sudan’s gold resources to fund its Ukraine war, uncovered by CNN.

Forced to disavow Russian support in the face of an international outcry, they returned to the negotiating table with their former partners in government as part of the move to restore civilian rule. Negotiations have centered around who gets to be the senior partner of the required merger of the two forces.

The current hostilities, sources told CNN, are the culmination of what both parties view as an existential fight for dominance.

CNN's Nima Elbagir contributed reporting to this post.

Former Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok urged military leader Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, army commanders and paramilitary leaders to stop the fighting.

At least three civilians have died Saturday, according to the Sudanese doctors' union, as al-Burhan's forces clash with the paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces.

“My third message is to the regional and international community, and to those who love peace all over the world; they must do their duty in finding a solution and calming down the warring sides," Hamdok said. "War in Sudan means war in the region.”

Key background: Hamdok was part of the Sudanese government ousted in a 2021 military coup led by al-Burhan, the country's top general.

Al-Burhan and RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo were allied in the coup and the prior toppling of Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, but tensions have grown between the two sides over plans to integrate the RSF into the army.

CNN's Nima Elbagir contributed to this report.

The United Kingdom's foreign minister called on Sudanese leadership to deescalate the ongoing clashes between army and paramilitary forces.

Leaders need to "restrain their troops," Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said in a statement Saturday afternoon, adding that "military action will not resolve this situation."

The Sudanese Doctors’ Trade Union has recorded at least three civilian deaths as Sudan's military and Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group clash near the capital of Khartoum. 

Two civilians were killed at Khartoum International Airport, according to the union's report, which was released Saturday afternoon. Another civilian was killed and five more were injured by live ammunition in the city of Al-Abayadh, which is in the central state of North Kordofan. 

Meanwhile, Fedail Hospital in central Khartoum has received dozens of wounded civilians and military personnel in the last several hours, medical sources told CNN.

Some of the wounded people are in serious condition, according to the sources.

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres "strongly condemns the outbreak of fighting between the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese Armed Forces in Sudan."

In a statement released Saturday, Guterres' spokesperson said he called for hostilities in Sudan to immediately come to an end.

His spokesperson added that Guterres is "engaging with leaders in the region" and urged regional Member States to "support efforts to restore order and return to the path of transition."

The African Union Commission issued a statement Saturday urging a ceasefire in Sudan and calling for "the political and military parties to find a fair political solution to the crisis." The commission's chairman, H.E. Moussa Faki Mahamat, called on the Rapid Support Forces paramilitaries in particular to stop the violence.

A statement said the chairman is "following closely and with great concern the developments in the Republic of Sudan" and appeals to all parties, "and the Rapid Support Forces, in particular, to immediately stop the destruction of the country, the terrorization of its population, and the bloodshed during the last ten days of Ramadan."

The statement also urged the international community to work together to help mediate a ceasefire between the two parties and "all other political and military forces to achieve a satisfactory solution to everyone."

Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) claimed control of Jabal Awliya air force base Saturday afternoon.

The airport in the village of Jabal Awliya — which is about 35 kilometers (roughly 20 miles) south of the capital Khartoum — serves as a base for the Sudanese Air Force. 

The Sudanese army has been refuting the paramilitary's claims: Earlier Saturday, Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan said no RSF paramilitary forces were able to enter the army's general command and all "strategic sites" remain under the army's control. 

CNN cannot independently verify the RSF or Armed Forces' claims. 

The confrontation between Sudan's Armed Forces and paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces is one that military sources say they have been bracing for. 

Sudan’s military leader Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and RSF Commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, until recently, were bedfellows. They were bound together by a 2021 coup and the prior toppling of ousted Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir.

A CNN investigation also uncovered another link between the two men: their involvement in Russia’s exploitation of Sudan’s gold resources to fund its Ukraine war, with Dagalo’s forces also being key recipients of Russian training and weaponry.

So what went wrong? The pie the two were forced to share got smaller. Forced to disavow Russian support in the face of an international outcry, they returned to the negotiating table with their former partners in government as part of the move to restore civilian rule. 

At stake in negotiations over recent weeks was who would get to be the senior partner of the required merger of the two forces, as per the terms of a new deal with the civilian leaders.

Sources in Sudan’s civilian movement and Sudanese military sources told CNN the main points of contention included the timeline for the merger of the forces, the status given to RSF officers in the future hierarchy, and whether RSF forces should be under the command of the army chief — rather than Sudan's commander-in-chief — who is currently al-Burhan. 

These hostilities, sources told CNN, are the culmination of what both parties view as an existential fight for dominance. One that has al-Burhan, they said, seeking support from Sudan’s former Islamist rulers, resurrecting the specter of days many Sudanese fought to leave behind.