War-torn On Friday, while the army and paramilitary forces engaged in intense battle throughout Khartoum, residents of the capital of Sudan reported a communication outage lasting for several hours.

“Violent clashes” shook the capital, witnesses told AFP over the phone, as citizens woke up to lost mobile phone and internet connectivity.

Unknown as to what caused the interruption, cellphone and internet networks were returned by the afternoon.

Throughout the day, columns of black smoke could be seen rising near army headquarters in Khartoum’s centre and in the city’s south.

Witnesses in Khartoum North reported “clashes with various weapons.”

Witnesses in Omdurman, located over the Nile River, reported seeing fighter jets and drones flying overhead.

Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the forces’ army head, has been at odds with the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, led by his former deputy, Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, since April 15.

According to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project, at least 3,000 people have been murdered in Sudan, with the fiercest fighting taking place in Khartoum and the western Darfur region.

According to the UN, almost 1.7 million Khartoum inhabitants have been forced to escape the city due to constant air strikes, tanks and fighters on the streets, and rampant looting.

Those who escaped, as well as the millions who remain, have turned to the internet for necessities, launching crowd-sourcing campaigns for escape routes, food, and medicine.