The Head of Sudanese Army Travels to Port Sudan.

Following more than four months of conflict with paramilitaries, the head of the Sudanese army, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, arrived on Sunday in the coastal city of Port Sudan, according to an official announcement.

Since the fighting began on April 15, Burhan has been confined inside the army headquarters in the capital Khartoum. This week, he made his first public appearance in months.

The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, led by former deputy of Burhan and opponent Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, have been waging an ongoing assault on the headquarters that the armed forces have been rebuffing.

Burhan was greeted on Sunday by his deputy Malik Agar and other government representatives who, like the UN, have moved their operations to Port Sudan, which has been spared the intense violence that has engulfed other regions of the country.

In the capital Khartoum, where witnesses also reported airstrikes, a medical source told journalists that "rockets fell on houses, killing five people" on Sunday.

Since leading a coup in October 2021 with Daglo, which toppled civilian officials from office and halted a precarious transition to civilian rule, Burhan has been the de facto ruler of Sudan.

With comments stating he was at the Wadi Seidna air base north of Khartoum, videos of Burhan's first sortie outside army headquarters were broadcast on Thursday.

More video was released by the army on Friday, showing Burhan addressing troops, promising them a "victory," and visiting an army hospital in the 300-kilometer-northeast city of Atbara.

The airport at Port Sudan has continued to operate for evacuation and relief flights while the airport in the capital has been closed since the start of the crisis, stoking rumors that the army head will travel abroad.

The army chief may be traveling to Jeddah, the location of previous ceasefire negotiations mediated by Saudi Arabia and the US, or Cairo, Burhan's traditional closest foreign ally, according to local journalists who have descended on the coastal city to follow the army chief's movements.

The Armed Conflict Location & Event Data project's conservative estimations indicate that the conflict has claimed the lives of close to 5,000 individuals.

The actual number is believed to be significantly higher because many victims were unable to access medical care, whole cities were cut off from the outside world, and both sides refused to report their casualties.

The violence has forced more than 4.6 million people from their homes, both inside and outside of Sudan, where the UN estimates that six million people are "one step away from famine."

Reporter: Zakariyya Adamu