Following an emergency meeting, the AU said in a statement that it "requests the chairperson of the AU commission to continue using his good offices to engage with the parties to the conflict in order to facilitate dialogue and peaceful resolution of the conflict in Sudan; and commends his commitment to immediately travel to Sudan to engage the parties towards a ceasefire."

No further details were immediately available on the mission.

Expressing "grave concern and alarm", the pan-African body also called on the forces of the two battling sides to "protect civilians especially women and children".

The AU statement also demanded that the warring sides "swiftly embrace a peaceful solution and inclusive dialogue to resolve their differences" and said it "strongly rejects any external interference that could complicate the situation in Sudan".

Violence in Sudan erupted early Saturday after weeks of power struggles between army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his deputy, Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, commander of the heavily-armed paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

More than 50 civilians, including three UN staff, have been killed in the fighting.