The Battle of Sinkat and the Death of Tawfiq Bey When the army encamped in Sinkat, the government issued an order to the governor of Suakin to arrest him. Tawfiq Bey, the governor of Tokar, and sixty soldiers were sent to arrest him. The government was unaware that Uthman had with him about twenty thousand fighters. Tawfiq Bey summoned the sheikhs of the Sha'ab and Nurab tribes, who assured him of the ease of arresting Uthman and swore to him that they would be his helpers. No sooner had Tawfiq reached Sinkat than Uthman, who had begun to attack the soldiers, met them with a large force. They were repulsed and suffered heavy losses. In the end, Tawfiq Bey fortified himself inside a thorn enclosure and dug trenches to defend himself until it became clear that Uthman had defeated the army, which was led by Mudir Tahir Pasha, and inflicted a defeat on Bakr Pasha.

The reason for this was the arrival of Mudir Tahir Pasha.

When the government decided to leave Sudan and evacuate it, it entrusted Mudir Tahir Pasha with the command of an army of six thousand soldiers to rescue Tokar and Sinkat. The army set out from Suakin towards Tokar, but instead of going to Tokar, it went to Trinkitat by sea. Uthman had learned of the approach of this army and gathered a large army, numbering over fifty thousand fighters. He met them in the middle of the road between Tokar and Trinkitat. The army had not marched ten miles when the enemy emerged from all sides and attacked them by surprise, inflicting heavy losses. Only the commander, a few soldiers, and some servants escaped. The army lost all its ammunition and cannons.