A number of first-hand accounts have emerged from those parts of Sudan where there is fighting.

British-Sudanese doctor Iman was in Khartoum visiting relatives and was on her way to the airport on Saturday when the violence erupted.

She had planned a short trip to Saudi Arabia, but it was cancelled because of the fighting.

Describing the scene at the airport, she said she saw the paramilitaries of the Rapid Defence Forces breaking through the fence and drive onto the airport runway.

"It was very, very bizarre," she told BBC News.

"That's when we heard the gun fire and very shortly after that the earth was shaking. In the airport the situation was chaotic, there were children crying."

Image source, Reuters

Khartoum-based medic Dr Alaadin Awad lives near a military base, and said because of the fighting he has not been able to leave his house to help the injured.

"All the parties should have a consensus that the war is bad and there is no a good war and there is no bad peace," he said.

United Nations secretary general António Guterres has led international calls for an immediate ceasefire in Sudan and a resumption of stalled talks on returning the country to civilian rule.

In a tweet, external, he said he condemned the outbreak of fighting and was engaging with the African Union and leaders in the region

He said he reaffirmed the UN's commitment to support the people of Sudan "in their efforts to restore a democratic transition".

China's foreign ministry has said it was highly concerned by the fighting and urged both sides to prevent the situation from escalating.

In its latest response, Washington said Secretary of State Antony Blinken was engaging with countries with influence to try to halt the fighting.

The Arab League is holding an urgent meeting on Sunday to discuss the situation, following a request by Egypt and Saudi Arabia.

Image source, AFP

We resume our coverage of events in Sudan, where more than 50 civilians are reported killed in the latest unrest as clashes between the national army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) enter a second day.

Heavy fighting is continuing in the capital Khartoum, and has spread to Omdurman, across the city on the other bank of the River Nile, and nearby Khartoum North (also known as Bahri).

Witnesses also reported gunfire in the Red Sea city of Port Sudan and in the western region of Darfur.

Among those killed were three employees of the UN’s World Food Programme after the RSF and armed forces exchanged fire at a military base in Kabkabiya in the west of the country.

Both sides claimed to be in control of key installations including the main airport, the presidential palace and the army chief’s residence in Khartoum.

The clashes erupted after tensions over a proposed transition to civilian rule between the two warring factions.

The army has ruled out negotiations with the paramilitary group, but International leaders have urged both sides to stop fighting and resume stalled talks.

Stay with us as we bring you the latest updates.

We're going to pause our live coverage of events in Sudan, but there are other places you can go to for the latest updates:

• our news story will be kept up to date with all the latest developments

• we have this really simple guide to what's going on in Sudan
• here is a wrap of some of today's dramatic footage from Khartoum

Today's coverage was brought to you by our editor Rob Corp; the writers were Alexandra Fouché, Laura Gozzi, Robert Plummer, James Gregory, as well as Damian Zane from our Africa desk, and we were joined by Nadeem Shad, Ian Casey and Gem O'Reilly from our video team.

James Gregory
Live reporter

As we draw to the end of our live coverage, here's a recap of the day's key events in Sudan:

• Widespread fighting has erupted in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, between rival armed groups
• There have been heavy gunfire and explosions in Khartoum and several other towns involving army units and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) - a powerful paramilitary group
• At least three civilians have been killed in today's clashes, a doctors' trade union says
• There have been conflicting accounts from the two sides throughout the day about who controls key areas of the capital
• RSF has claimed to be in control the Republican Palace - the seat of the country's presidency - as well as Khartoum International Airport
• But General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the country's leader and head of the military, has denied these claims, insisting his forces remain in control
• Airlines have halted flights to and from Sudan and Saudi Arabian Airlines says one of its planes came under fire while on the tarmac
• RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo says his troops will keep on fighting until all army bases are captured
• The army says airstrikes have destroyed at least two RSF bases
• Neighbouring Chad has closed its long eastern border with Sudan amid the clashes
• Civilian groups in Sudan, as well as the international community, have called for an immediate end to the fighting

Mohanad Hashim
BBC Africa

This has been the much-feared worst-case scenario. A power struggle between the two most powerful generals in Sudan.

With fighting going on for 12 hours, it is not clear who has the upper hand and the situation beyond Khartoum remains murky and confusing. Throughout the day claims from both camps suggested their forces were on top of the situation, but recent reports suggest things are very volatile.

The two generals have a long working partnership that dates back to the early 2000s in the bloody, genocidal Darfur conflict. Since 2019, the RSF has thought to present itself as a legitimate national force instead of a tribal and ethnic militia used in counter-insurgency. The group runs one of the largest mercenary operations in the world and has been involved in Yemen and Libya. They have good working ties with the Russian mercenary group Wagner and are reported to have huge business and mining interests in Sudan.

Their adversary, the Sudanese army, has been the dominant political force in Sudan for decades. Recently ties with the RSF have worsened over security sector reform and how long the RSF needs to merge into the army.

It is now night-time in the capital, Khartoum, and while people are breaking the fast witnesses are saying that the sounds of fighting can still be heard.

One reporter in Omdurman, just on the other side of the Nile to Khartoum, told the BBC that there has been gunfire, but military jets have stopped flying overhead.

Journalist Isma'il Kushkush, who has been tweeting regular updates, external from the Sudanese capital, has said that heavy artillery fire has resumed in downtown Khartoum.

There is a sense of concern over what might unfold overnight.

Earlier we reported that Saudi Arabian Airlines said one of its jets "had an accident" at Khartoum before its scheduled departure for Riyadh.

The state-owned airline has now said the plane came under fire while it was on the tarmac.

Passengers, crew and staff were moved from the airport to the Saudi embassy in the capital Khartoum, the airline said.

The airline has suspended flights to and from Sudan until further notice.

Image source, Flight Radar

International flights appear to be avoiding Sudanese airspace as they cross the continent.

Aviation analyst Alex Macheras has been tracking flights, external on the FlightRadar24, external website and has noticed that they are all avoiding the area.

This means that the journeys will take longer and the planes may need extra fuel.

An Emirates flight from Brazil to the UAE is making an unsceduled stop in Tanzania to refuel "due to the sudden requirement to avoid Sudan’s airspace", Macheras has tweeted.

FightRadar24 also shows that the Kenayn Airways flight KQ103 from London to Nairobi, which on Friday flew over Sudan, has today taken a different route over the Red Sea and Eritrea.

RSF has shared a video which they claim shows Egyptian troops who had "surrendered" to them at Merowe Airport - some 271 miles (436km) north of Khartoum.

The footage, which has been seen by Reuters but not verified, shows a number of men dressed in combat uniform, crouched on the ground and speaking to members of the RSF in an Egyptian Arabic dialect to troops in RSF uniforms.

Egyptian and Sudanese troops have periodically staged joint military exercises in the north of the country in the wake of diplomatic tensions with Ethiopia.

An Egyptian military spokesman says the situation in Sudan is being followed closely, adding that the military is currently co-ordinating with the relevant authorities to guarantee the safety of Egyptian forces, Reuters reports.

Moussa Faki Mahamat, chairman of the African Union Commission, has released a statement on the unfolding situation in Sudan.

The statement says the leader of the bloc is urging "political and military parties to find a fair political solution to the crisis that arose after the 25 October 2021 coup and its disastrous consequences".

Mahamat is referring to the day the Sudanese military, led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, took control of the government in Sudan.

Mr Mahamat's statement appeals to the army and the RSF to:

Sudan's membership of the African Union was suspended in June 2019.The bloc is made up of 55 states from across the continent.

BBC Nairobi reporter Emmanuel Igunza explains why paramilitaries of the Rapid Support Forces are in conflict with the government in Sudan.

Igunza said the RSF are "a power outfit and very feared by many people in Sudan".

He added that people want the unit to be disbanded and become part of the army.

British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly has tweeted, external in the last few moments.

He says the violence in Sudan "must stop immediately".

Heavy gunfire has been heard in parts of Sudan's capital, Khartoum, after clashes started between parliamentary forces and the army.

People have been filmed running away and taking cover as black smoke continues to rise in the city and the unrest continues.

A Reuters journalist said they saw armoured vehicles and heard weapons in the streets.

Image source, Getty Images

Former Sudanese Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok has made a statement in a video posted on his Facebook account.

He says the "exchange of fire must stop immediately" and calls on the Sudanese people to "stay strong".

He asks the Sudanese people not to allow "the drums of war to take over", before issuing a plea to the international community to "do their duty in finding a solution".

Hamdok served from 2019 until he was ousted in the October 2021 coup, before being reinstated again a month later.

He resigned last year after long-running disagreements with the army.

Image source, AFP

What's happening now is the latest upheaval since the toppling of Sudan's long-serving President Omar al-Bashir.

Bashir - who had been in power for nearly three decades - had been confronted by months of street protests when generals ousted him in April 2019.

The military promised a transition to civilian rule, but the demonstrators vowed to stay on the streets demanding a role in the government.

A joint military-civilian government was then agreed in August 2019, which was supposed to pave the way for elections.

But there were tensions between the sides and two years later the military staged another coup.

Since then, attempts to resurrect the plan to move towards civilian rule have hit problems.

A framework proposal agreed last December has been rejected by both pro-military and civilian groups and has not been finalised.

The central African country of Chad has closed its 872-mile (1,403 km) eastern border with Sudan "until further notice", Reuters news agency reports.

"Chad appeals to the regional and international community as well as to all friendly countries to prioritise a return to peace," the government said in a statement.

Image source, Getty Images

As we've been reporting, there have been conflicting accounts throughout the day about who has control of Khartoum's key sites.

General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the country's leader and head of the military, has denied claims by the Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group that it controlled the presidential palace, military headquarters and airport.

In a recorded phone call with Al Jazeera TV, Gen al-Burhan insisted his forces remained in control.

Emmanuel Igunza
Reporting from Nairobi

Image source, Reuters

Clashes are continuing in and around several locations in the centre of the Sudanese capital, Khartoum.

Witnesses have told the BBC that they have taken shelter in their homes as fighting spreads to residential areas.

Many roads and bridges in the capital have been sealed off.

Flights into the city are also turning around and there are reports of a commercial plane being hit by an explosive while on the tarmac in Khartoum.

The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) says it has taken control of at least three airports, the army chief's residence and the presidential palace.

But the army denies this and says the Sudanese air force is attacking paramilitary bases.

There have been calls from across the international community for the two sides to de-escalate this conflict and return to talks aimed at returning the country to civilian rule.

Gunshots could be heard in the background of this news bulletin on state-run Sudan TV.

The channel halted a news bulletin after the presenter began reading an item about the situation in Khartoum.

"We hear gunshots and explosions and we are safe here in the studio," the presenter said before the programme abruptly ended and switched to songs about unity, peace and patriotism.

Lyrics including "let us remain as one" and "the skin colour is the same, the dialect is the same" were broadcast by the network.