[1] Ali wad Hilu's followers included the Dighaym, Kianan and al-Lahiwiyin Baqqara Arabs from the Gezira region, which lies between the Blue Nile and the White Nile.
[3] His forces participated in the sack of Khartoum in January 1885 in which General Gordon was killed, and which established the Mahdi's control over the Sudan.
[2] When the British re-invaded Sudan, at the Battle of Omdurman (2 September 1898) he led a force of 5,000 fighting under his green flag.
[4] For the next year he remained loyal to the Khalifa 'Abd Allah as he wandered in the regions of the White Nile, Nuba Mountains and Kordofan.
[3] Ali wad Hilu was killed at the Battle of Umm Dibaikarat (25 November 1899), where the Khalifa 'Abd Allah and other Mahdist leaders were also killed.