The violence comes after weeks of rising tensions between army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his number two, Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, who leads the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group. The two are in conflict over the integration of the RSF into the regular army.
The RSF says it has taken control of the presidential palace and the airports of Khartoum and Merowe to the north. Eyewitnesses report that truckloads of soldiers entered Khartoum airport.
The Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs has urged the Dutch in Sudan to stay at home in all cases and not to take to the streets.