A Somali minister claims his government is engaged in reconciliation talks with Somalia's second militant group, Hizbul Islam.

Fisheries and Marine Resources Minister, who is also Deputy Prime Minister Abdirahman Hajji Aden Ibbi said the negotiations with the group, led by Islamist leader Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, have been going on for the past few weeks.

"The talks are progressing well and we are very hopeful that we will reach agreement with Hizbul Islam because this group has no ties with Al Qaeda," Aden Ibbi told reporters in Mogadishu.

"Hizbul Islam promised us that it would hand over the control of their areas before The 50th anniversary of Somalia's independence, we hope that the Somali flag will be raised in those areas, because this group is not against the sovereignty of our country," he added.

It is not clear who is pushing for the talks from the government side or representing the militant group in the talks, as no word from Aweys, who has recently loss his officials to Al-Shabaab, leaving him with empty shell. Other reports also suggest that members from Hizbul Islam group have walked out of the negotiation table for unclear reasons.

The negotiation claims come as Al Shabab, Somalia's most powerful insurgent group advances to more towns currently controlled by Hizbal Islam in a bid to seize them before the occupiers officially hands over to the government.

The two groups have been waging deadly insurgency against the government of Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, a former Islamist leader and close ally of Aweys.

Ahmed is currently holed up in Villa Somalia, under the protection of African Union troops. (From allafrica.com -click here to go to the source)