At least 481 civilians killed in Khartoum since Sudan conflict began, say doctors

More clashes in capital on Monday morning as warring parties hold talks in Saudi Arabia

Smoke billows in Khartoum on Sunday as air strikes continue. AFP

At least 481 civilians have been killed in Khartoum since violence broke out in mid-April between the Sudanese military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, says Sudan’s Doctors Syndicate.

It said more than 2,560 civilians had been wounded.

The syndicate said at least 100 people were killed in clashes last month between armed fighters Geneina, in Sudan’s Darfur region.

Hospitals are still out of service in Geneina and an accurate count of the wounded was hard to make, the doctors’ union said in a statement posted on its official Facebook page late on Sunday.

Fighting broke out in Darfur a few days after Sudan’s military, led by army chief Gen Abdel Fattah Al Burhan, and Rapid Support Forces, led by his former right-hand man Gen Mohamed Dagalo, took up arms against each other in Khartoum. It is seen as evidence that conflict in the capital could escalate to other parts of the East African country.

People fleeing the fighting in Sudan queue for water at the UN High Commissioner for Refugees transit centre in Renk, near the border with South Sudan. Reuters

Fighting could be heard in south Khartoum on Monday morning as envoys from Sudan's warring parties met in Saudi Arabia for talks that international mediators hope will bring an end to a three-week conflict.

The US-Saudi initiative is the first serious attempt to end fighting that has derailed an internationally backed plan to usher in civilian rule following years of unrest, and created a humanitarian crisis.

“Pre-negotiation” talks began on Saturday and “will continue in the coming days in the expectation of reaching an effective short-term ceasefire to facilitate humanitarian assistance”, the Saudi Foreign Ministry said.

Riyadh was pushing for "a timetable for expanded negotiations to reach a permanent cessation of hostilities", the ministry said.

The United Nations has warned of a widening humanitarian crisis after fighting has already displaced 335,000 people and created 117,000 refugees.

More than 60,000 Sudanese have fled north into Egypt, 30,000 west to Chad, and over 27,000 to South Sudan, according to the UN.