A leading nationalist evaded Egyptian courts by claiming Italian citizenship

Evidence

Ironically, `Alï Pasha Sharïf’s case had been separated from the others, as he had almost immediately claimed to be an Italian citizen and thus exempt from the jurisdiction of the Egyptian government for whom he worked in the Legislative Assembly. His case was handed over to the Italian consul, and he was not forced to appear before the court-martial. British officials noted with great smugness that “this supposed Egyptian President of what is looked on as the most exclusively national institution, who had always ostensibly availed himself of Egyptian nationality and used the Native Tribunals, should, when detected in breaking the Egyptian law, endeavor to shield himself by announcing that he was an Italian subject.” — Eve M. Troutt Powell, A Different Shade of Colonialism_…, 694

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to legal pluralism and capitulation regimes in the Ottoman/Egyptian context, matching the reader’s interest in colonial legal tools.