British political ambitions

A war with the powers descending on the shores of Lake Victoria would expose it to danger from the East or West.

Commander Monteil said in his report to the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs about the Fashoda campaign, "The English have since the first moment set their eyes on Sudan, which must be a sacrifice for the poor, exploited Egypt, offered to England."

Sir Gerald Portal's report, the British representative in Uganda, states: "If we look at Uganda from a political point of view, we find that it is the strongest government in East Africa. In Uganda are the sources of the Nile. Uganda and Egypt are in one inseparable position, because whoever controls the sources of the Nile can act as he pleases and can stop the Nile from reaching Egypt."

Wadih Pasha said in his memorandum dated 9/8/1900 to Sir Evelyn Baring: "It is clear that the Nile is the life of Egypt, and the Nile is Sudan. No one should doubt that the ties that bind Egypt to Sudan are strong and unbreakable, like the soul is bound to the body." Let the Egyptian people understand the meaning of these words and their like, to know the position and value of Sudan, and to appreciate the sacrifices made by their fathers and grandfathers in its path.