On the twenty-fifth of the month, Graham marched his army out of Suakin to meet the Arabs and fight them again. They would flee before him and retreat to the hills whenever they heard the sound of cannons. He continued in this manner until he reached Ta'in, burned its houses, and returned to Suakin, then proceeded with the grain from there.

Chapter Ten The departure of the English army from Suakin after the incident of Al-Tayyib and the incident of Tuwai was a disaster for the Muslim tribes loyal to the government. The enemies, the Ansar of the Mahdi, attacked them and became more daring and arrogant. When they realized that the English had left the region, they said, "The coast is clear for us," and they quickly resorted to aggression and transgression. They surprised the people of Suakin a short distance from the city, drove off their camels and livestock, and blocked the wells of Hindub and Ta'in to cut off water from the Muslim tribes. Mahmoud Ali, Sheikh Al-Fudala, confronted them to resist them. Reinforcements of Egyptian soldiers were sent to the Suakin garrison, and the two English gunboats anchored in the harbor prepared to fire their cannons. Soldiers were landed on the enemy shores opposite Suakin.

Admiral Hewett had gone to Massawa on April 2nd to speak with the King of Abyssinia about rescuing Kassala and other forts south of Khartoum. Kassala was then in great distress, besieged by the Hadendowa, and its Bash-Buzuks were fleeing one after another. Therefore, its governor sent for help via telegraph wires, and news spread of the fall of Kassala.