 Although a temporary appointment it became a permanent post, for an experienced political administrator.McMahon was appointed British High Commissioner in Cairo, to replace Lord Kitchener who had become War Secretary in London.With the approval of Kitchener and Foreign Secretary Sir Edward Grey, McMahon began a long correspondence with Sharif Husayn, the Ottoman-appointed ruler of the Hijaz to use the Bedouin tribes under his control to support the Egyptian Expeditionary Force in overthrowing the Ottomans.