Sudanese factions battle for control of arms factory

A massive fire was still burning on Thursday near a military complex containing an arms factory in southern Khartoum. Sudan’s army has battled to defend the premises in some of the fiercest fighting for weeks.

The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), in the eighth week of a power struggle with the army, attacked the heavily protected, sprawling Yarmouk complex on Tuesday.

The group on Wednesday posted videos in which it claimed to have taken over a warehouse filled with weapons and ammunition.

Fighting across the three cities that make up Sudan’s greater capital region has picked up since a 12-day ceasefire between the army and RSF formally expired on June 3 after repeated violations.

A fire that began in the morning suddenly grew in size before sunset on Wednesday as explosions were heard, another resident living close to the depots said.

Local activists said the fires were caused by the bombing of the fuel and gas depots, and that houses in the area had been hit by shells and stray bullets.

Residents in Omdurman and Bahri, about 15km away, reported that towering flames were visible after nightfall from Yarmouk.