 Mathews and an escort force went to Witu where , on 31 July , they removed the flag of the IBEA company and replaced it with the red flag of Zanzibar , before destroying several villages and causing Oman to retreat into the forests . The British troops then withdrew , having suffered heavily from malaria , but the Sudanese and Zanzibari troops remained . A further expedition was sent of 140 sailors and 85 other troops but Oman died soon after and a more <unk> sultan , Omar bin <unk> , was appointed to govern on behalf of Zanzibar , bringing the affair to a close . In return for this action , Mathews received the British East and West Africa campaign medal . 
