Two years into a civil war, troops recaptured the palace in Khartoum, routing a paramilitary foe. Civilians have been trapped in the middle in a city with an apocalyptic air.

The state Television of Sudan reported on Thursday that the army is nearing the capture of the Presidential Palace in Khartoum from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), indicating a pivotal change in the ongoing two-year conflict that risks dividing the nation.

Sudan's army is close to taking control of the Presidential Palace in Khartoum from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, state TV reported on Thursday, in a significant milestone in a two-year-old conflict that threatens to fracture the country.