BELETWEIN, Somalia Sep 25 (Garowe Online) - The governor of a region in central Somalia has declared his loyalty to an Islamist opposition faction, weeks after saying he quit the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) in Mogadishu.

Sheikh Abdirahman Ibrahim Ma'ow, the governor of Hiran region, held a press conference on Thursday in Beletwein, the provincial capital of Hiran.

"Starting today, the Hiran Administration is part of Hizbul Islam and will work under that name…our fighters and weapons are now part of Hizbul Islam," Sheikh Ma'ow told reporters at the Beletwein administration building.

Sheikh Ma'ow

He urged the public to maintain order in Beletwein and other parts of Hiran region, while sending a warning to TFG officials in the region.

"The TFG members who are still inside Hiran must leave our region, because there is no government in Somalia we recognize," Sheikh Ma'ow added.

TFG lawmakers and troops are based at El Gal military camp in the outskirts of Beletwein. But Sheikh Ma'ow accused the TFG soldiers of "bothering the public."

Hizbul Islam's political leaders have not publicly endorsed Sheikh Ma'ow and the Hiran administration as part of the opposition faction, which is waging a bloody insurgency against the TFG in Mogadishu.

Parts of Hiran region come under the control of Al Shabaab, a powerful insurgent faction that is independent of Hizbul Islam.

Change of heart

Sheikh Ma'ow was the governor of Hiran region since the Islamic Courts Union (ICU) rose to power in south-central Somalia in 2006.

He actively fought against Ethiopian troops when Addis Ababa intervened in Somalia to overthrow the ICU and to bolster the TFG in Mogadishu. When Ethiopian troops withdrew from Mogadishu, Baidoa and Beletwein in Jan. 2009, Sheikh Ma'ow supported the new TFG led by President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed, the former ICU leader.

Sheikh Ma'ow returned to Beletwein in August after spending two months in Mogadishu engaged in direct talks with TFG leaders. Upon his return, he announced that he has withdrawn support to the TFG, which he called "weak." READ: As Ethiopia withdraws, Hiran governor quits Somalia govt

Independent sources tell Somali news agency Garowe Online that Hiran's Islamist governor went to Mogadishu to persuade TFG leaders to support the establishment of a federal state government in Hiran.

But TFG leaders, who are busy fighting insurgents in Mogadishu, evaded the idea because it required funding support from the cash-strapped Somali government.

The decision to join Hizbul Islam after spending weeks without disclosing his political position was "influenced by a need to shield from Al Shabaab," the sources said.

Hizbul Islam is the only faction in south-central Somalia that Al Shabaab fighters have not attacked, the sources added.

Al Shabaab fighters have attacked TFG troops, Ahlu Sunnah Wal Jamee'a militia and even African Union peacekeepers (AMISOM) in Mogadishu and other parts of south-central Somalia.

Source: Garowe Online