Kingdom of Hejaz

During the Great War, Great Britain saught a means to weaken the Ottoman EMpire. The Sharif of Mecca, Hussein bin Ali, offered Arab support in return for the creation of an independent Arab state. Britain conditionally agreed, and funded the Arab Revolt. When the Great War ended, Britain was forced to surrender their protectorates in the Middle East to the Ottoman Empire. However, the Arab Revolt continued without European support, eventually pushing the Ottomans to Anatolia.

Eventually, this Arab kingdom became to encorporate the regions of Transjordan, Palestine, and Mesopotamia, as well as the western portion of the Arabian Peninsula. Hussein invited Egypt to join after their declaration of independence, but Egyptian and British decent forced him to rescind the offer.

Following the Arab Revolt, Hussein bin Ali declared the Kingdom of Hejaz with himself as king. He also attempted to declare himself the Caliph of the Islamic world, much to the opposition of many nations. In Nejd, the idea was considered an insult, and the Sultanate attempted to invade an annex the region. Nejd sought the support of Britain, who had become disillusioned with bin Ali after he refused to sign the Anglo-Hashemite Treaty. In response, Hejaz gained the support of Germany in order to gain access to the region for the Berlin to Baghdad railway. Neither side managed to gain momentum, and a ceasefire was declared.

King Hussein took great offense from the Turkish Sultan Mehmed VI retained the title of caliph, as Hussein had coveted it for himself. As a result, Hussein created a competing caliphate, declaring himself as the true leader of Islam. This increased tensions between Hejaz and Turkey, risking conflict. As a result, Germany once again attempted to play mediator, while also creating the Kaiserliches Eisenbahnkorps, or the Imperial Railway Corps, as an elite group of soldiers to protect their interests along the Berlin to Baghdad Railway. The increase in German troops in the region forced both sides to come to the negotiating table, but an agreement could not be reached. However, as Germany threatened to attack the aggressor should it lead to war, neither side risked it.