Enver, Cemal Pasha and Talât Pasha had all fled the country to seek sanctuary in Germany. The Young Turk government led by Enver Pasha had collapsed in the days leading up to the armistice. The Allies, however, knew he was a figurehead and hoped that his retention would help ensure post-war stability.

The Sultan, Mehmed VI, feared he would be deposed. The British were in control of Syria, Palestine and Mesopotamia (Iraq), and British, French and Greek forces stood ready to march across the Bulgarian border and occupy Ottoman Thrace and Constantinople. The armistice of 31 October 1918 ended the fighting between the Ottoman Empire and the Allies but did not bring stability or peace to the region. Ottoman signatories of the Treaty of Sèvres