authority away from Sheikh Omar Iman, because the group (Hizbul Islam) appointed him as chairman." Sheikh Aweys said that Indho Ade and the others from the press conference should form their own group instead of doing what he described as "trying to destroy Hizbul Islam". Prior to this Sheikh Omar Iman had denied that Indho Ade was the group's defence secretary. This led to the division of Hizbul Islam, with one group led by Indho Ade and the other led by Sheikh Aweys (with Omar Iman as chairman). On 21 April 2009, Anole and the Ras Kamboni Brigades fought each other in a village called Abdalla Birole, which lies 40 km west of Kismayo. This happened after Anole fighters invaded a village called Bulo Haji, while Ras Kamboni Brigade militia arrived in Abdalla Birole and they clashed. The situation in the two villages was said to be tense, 4 people were killed and 7 injured during the fighting. On 4 May, Al Shabaab and members of the main faction of Hizbul Islam, led by Sheikh Aweys and Umar Iman, attacked a base used by Indho Ade's group of Hizbul Islam. Indho Ade's lieutenants claimed that Al Shabaab and Hizbul Islam trying to expand territory into areas under the control of Indho Ade's militia. Eight days later, Indho Ade handed over his arms to Sheikh Aweys, ending the group's division. However, soon after, he defected to the government. On 26 May, Omar Iman Abubakr stepped down as chairman and handed over his position to Sheikh Aweys, who was by then clearly the most powerful figure in the group. Defeat by Al-Shabaab 2009-2010 On 1 October 2009, armed conflict between Hizbul Islam and Al-Shabaab began in a dispute between a faction of the Ras Kamboni Brigades and Al-Shabaab over who was in charge of Kisimayo. ARS-A and JABISO, which were aligned with Al-Shabaab in Mogadishu and the central Somalia Hiran region, refused to support the Ras Kamboni Brigades, meanwhile Anole remained neutral. It also led to a split within the Ras Kamboni Brigades, with a faction led by Sheikh "Madoobe" starting the war against Al-Shabaab and a faction led by Hassan "Turki" siding with Al Shabaab. The Battle of Kismayo was won by Al-Shabaab which expelled Sheikh Madbobe's Ras Kamboni Brigade militia from the city. In the battles that followed, in November 2009, Sheikh Madobe's militia was overpowered by Al-Shabaab and local