Celebrations erupted in military-controlled areas, stoking hopes the victory might be a turning point in Sudan’s ruinous civil war.

The development marks one of the most significant gains for the army in its almost two-year long war with rebel forces.

Sudan's army said on Saturday it had entered the central city of Wad Madani and was pushing out its paramilitary rivals the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a step which if completed successfully would be its biggest gain in nearly two years of war.

Sudan’s military and its allies have taken back a strategic city from the rebel Rapid Support Forces, officials said Saturday, dealing a major blow to the notorious paramilitary group the United States accused of committing genocide in the country’s ongoing civil war.