 Napoleon , who had been well respected in Egypt and had earned himself the nickname Sultan el @-@ Kebir ( the Great Sultan ) among the people of Cairo , lost their admiration and was no longer so addressed . In March 1800 , French General Jean Baptiste Kléber was assassinated by Suleiman al @-@ Halabi , a student at al @-@ Azhar . Following the assassination , Napoleon ordered the closing of the mosque ; the doors remained bolted until Ottoman and British assistance arrived in August 1801 . 
