Heavy clashes broke out between rival military factions in several parts of Sudan’s capital on Wednesday as a 72-hour ceasefire that saw several reports of violations expired, witnesses said.

Shortly before the truce ended at 6am (0400 GMT) fighting was reported in all three of the cities that make up the wider capital around the confluence of the Nile: Khartoum, Bahri and Omdurman.

Sudan’s army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have been battling each other for more than two months, wreaking destruction on the capital, triggering widespread violence in the western region of Darfur and causing more than 2.5 million people to flee their homes.

Witnesses said army aircraft carried out air strikes in Bahri and the RSF responded with anti-aircraft fire. They reported artillery fire and heavy clashes in Omdurman and ground fighting in southern Khartoum.

Residents also reported clashes near an army camp in South Kordofan State, where a large rebel force that is not clearly aligned with either of the factions fighting in Khartoum has been mobilising.