New ideas

Idris: However, the written sources of the Khatmiyya mention that Sayyid al-Khatm told his disciples that the invasion of eastern Sudan, a village (al-Sunniyya) on Jabal al-Tak, would reach the village he founded (now Kassala). These sources go further, narrating that al-Khatm had written a letter to these invaders, asking them to treat his followers well. I believe that Sayyid al-Khatm's intuition, and his face, may have been due to his having information from some source about the intentions of the upcoming campaign on Sudan. This cannot be interpreted further. As for the connection of the Khatmiyya tariqa, or their link to the new rulers, the documents and events reveal an important aspect of the history of the Khatmiyya and their connection to the people in power during the time of Sayyid al-Hasan bin al-Khatm. Regarding this aspect, we can say that the government's policy towards the Khatmiyya before the Mahdist revolution was not based on favoritism and bias, as Na'um Shuqair mentioned in his valuable book on the history of Sudan. The treatment of the Turks (which was natural) varied from one governor to another and from one region to another. Sayyid al-Hasan was subjected to harassment by Ahmad Pasha Abu Wuddan (d. 1844), who was the governor-general of Sudan from 1838 until his death. The Khatmiyya considered the death of Abu Wuddan to be one of Sayyid al-Hasan's miracles. A group of Khatmiyya followers also suffered mass killing (or what is called genocide today) in the late 1830s of the nineteenth century by the former Turkish government. The Turkish government, especially the Khadiv, sometimes viewed the followers of the Khatmiyya with suspicion and doubt, seeing them as idle people. However, Sayyid al-Hasan, in another region of the country, eastern Sudan, found respect and appreciation due to his growing influence there. The government requested his assistance during the Sudanese Mahdist revolution. The government, due to his intervention, was unable to resolve the situation in its favor. However, the true beginning of clear political action for the followers of the Khatmiyya tariqa began with the start of the Mahdist revolution, defending Kassala, one of their important centers. As a result, the Khatmiyya leader at the time, Sayyid Muhammad Othman al-Awsat or al-Thani, was stabbed and, suffering from his wounds, traveled to Egypt where he died and was buried in 1884. His mosque was also destroyed after it was built with the latest non-local specifications. The Khatmiyya considered the Mahdist revolution a trial and sedition that must be eliminated. They wanted