In June, British soldiers detained a Sudanese activist, Muhammad al-Mahdï, for trying to reach Cairo and visit Parliament. His forced return on a train to Khartoum prompted anti-British demonstrations. These were soon followed by a funeral for a high-ranking and popular Egyptian official, in which speeches about the unity of the Nile Valley provoked yet another demonstration.

Eve M. Troutt Powell, A Different Shade of Coloni…, loc. 1033