KHARTOUM - Sporadic gunfire rang out in parts of the Sudanese capital Khartoum despite a US-brokered agreement between the warring generals to cease fire for 72 hours to pave the way for talks on a more lasting truce.
Ten days of heavy fighting, including air strikes and artillery barrages, have killed hundreds of people, many of them civilians, and left some neighbourhoods of greater Khartoum in ruins.
But in other areas there has been a reduction in the intensity of fighting since foreign governments scrambled road convoys, aircraft and ships to get their nationals out since the weekend, witnesses said.
Unconfirmed video posted on social media showed bewildered civilians walking down one street in Khartoum North where virtually every building was bombed out and smoke was still rising from the scorched ruins.
The Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) agreed to the ceasefire "following intense negotiations", US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement shortly before the truce took effect at midnight.
Previous bids to pause the conflict failed to take hold, but both sides confirmed they had agreed to the three-day halt.
"This ceasefire aims to establish humanitarian corridors, allowing citizens and residents to access essential resources, healthcare and safe zones, while also evacuating diplomatic missions," the RSF tweeted.
In a statement on Facebook, the army said it would abide by the ceasefire on condition its rivals did so.
The RSF accused the regular army of breaking the ceasefire by keeping its aircraft, which have carried out devastating strikes over the past 10 days, in the skies over Khartoum.