CHEERED on by tens of thousands of raucous supporters and declaring that the Aceh peace accord was a precious gift from Allah, Aceh's popular independence leader Hasan di Tiro returned to his homeland at the weekend after almost 30 years.

The frail and emotional Dr di Tiro, the descendant of one of Aceh's most famous religious and political families who abandoned a business career in the US to fight as a guerilla in the island's jungles, knelt on an Islamic prayer mat and kissed the airport tarmac on his arrival.

Thousands lined the route to Banda Aceh's Grand Mosque, which was packed with people who had been pouring into the Acehnese capital for days ahead of the return of the man who founded the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) and was for decades regarded by Jakarta as its mortal enemy.

Now 83 and in poor health after three strokes, Dr di Tiro waved and spoke briefly at the mosque, saying only: "I am happy to have arrived in Aceh. Allahu Akbar!"

Dr di Tiro's declaration of independence in 1976 for the distinctive region of Indonesia on the northern tip of the island province of Sumatra ushered in a blood-soaked civil war that lasted until 2005 and resulted in 15,000 deaths.

As a guerilla fighter he listened to Vivaldi and Bach while plotting the insurgency of a people who are devout followers of Islam, had a powerful empire in the 17th century and ferociously resisted Dutch colonisers. He fled after being wounded in 1979, eventually landing in Sweden.

His absence only added to his mystique among Acehnese supporters of independence, and the diaries of his time as a guerilla were widely circulated.

"We are excited to finally see the man who has been behind all the struggle of Aceh," said Imran Abdullah, a high school teacher from Banda Aceh.

The devastating 2004 Boxing Day tsunami that killed 170,000 Acehnese provided the impetus for the peace accord, encouraging both sides to agree on compromise and focusing the attention of the world on the region.

Dr di Tiro's visit is timely because, with much of the post-tsunami reconstruction work completed, there have been renewed tensions in the region.

Some Free Aceh forces have returned to banditry and extortion, and there have been small explosions outside politicians' houses, with minor stand-offs between party supporters and Indonesian soldiers.