Khartoum, Sep 27 (IANS): Sudan's army launched a significant offensive against rival paramilitary forces in the capital, Khartoum, marking its most substantial effort in months to regain control of the city, according to military sources and witnesses.

Heavy fighting was reported in central Khartoum and its neighbouring cities of Omdurman and Bahri, with eyewitnesses noting air strikes, artillery fire, and clashes involving light and medium weapons. The army targeted several areas controlled by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in central, western, and southern Khartoum, a military source said on condition of anonymity on Thursday.

"Today, the army launched a ground attack on strategic areas in central Khartoum, marking the largest and most extensive assault of its kind to expel the militia from key locations," the source told Xinhua.

Witnesses reported explosions near the army's General Command, the General Intelligence Service headquarters, and Khartoum International Airport. The army has not issued an official comment regarding the operations.

Meanwhile, RSF advisor El Basha Tabig denied any army advances, claiming on social media platform X that RSF forces had destroyed an army unit attempting to cross the El Fitihab bridge toward Khartoum.

Video clips purportedly showing army units entering the Al Souq Al-Arabi Market in central Khartoum, identified as an RSF stronghold, circulated on social media.

The civil war that erupted on April 15 last year has wreaked havoc on Khartoum and other urban areas. Previous ceasefire agreements have failed to halt the conflict, which has resulted in a humanitarian crisis, leaving aid agencies struggling to deliver essential supplies amid ongoing fighting.