After the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in World War I, British troops occupied Constantinople and allies occupied various parts of the empire. Mustafa Kemal (later Atatürk) began organizing resistance to the occupation. Halide Edib gained a reputation in Istanbul as a "firebrand and a dangerous agitator." She was one of the main figures of the Empire to give speeches to thousands of people protesting the Occupation of Izmir by Greece during the Sultanahmet demonstrations. The British tried to exile her and several other leaders to Malta in March 1920.