SW News: On Sunday, July 2, fighting between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) grew more intense as the war in the nation's capital and western regions entered its 12th week with no signs of a peaceful resolution in sight.

Small arms fire, airstrikes, and artillery fire were audible, especially in Omdurman and the capital Khartoum, as the battle deepens a humanitarian crisis and threatens to involve other regional interests.

The army did not immediately comment on the RSF's claims that it shot down an army drone and a warplane in Bahri.

While the army has concentrated on air and artillery strikes, the RSF has controlled the capital on the ground and has been accused of plundering and occupying homes.

Last week, Army Chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan urged young men to join the war against the RSF, and on Sunday, the army uploaded images of what it claimed to be fresh recruits. The RSF was charged on Saturday by the Sudanese Doctors Union with raiding the Shuhada hospital, one of the few remaining in operation in the nation, and murdering a staff member. The RSF refuted the charge.

The westernmost city of El Geneina, where the RSF and Arab militias have been accused of ethnic cleansing, has been particularly hard struck by the war as have places in the western Kordofan and Darfur regions. Last month, talks sponsored by the United States and Saudi Arabia and held in Jeddah were canceled, and the army criticized an East African-led mediation effort because it suspected Kenya of bias.

Although no formal initiatives have been revealed, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the head of the army, and Malik Agar, his deputy on the nation's Sovereign Council, both voiced openness to any mediation efforts by Turkey or Russia last week.