Following Rawh's death, Nasr ibn Habib al-Muhallabi became governor of the province, but al-Fadl, who was then in charge of the Zab region, wanted the position for himself.
Nasr was then dismissed and al-Muhallab ibn Yazid was made interim governor,[2] until al-Fadl returned to the province in the spring of 791 and took up his new position.
[3] Al-Fadl's governorship quickly became troubled due to his poor relations with the garrison troops (jund), who he dealt with harshly as a result of their continued preference for Nasr.
[4] Following al-Mughirah's expulsion, Ibn al-Jarud initially attempted to reach an accord with al-Fadl, writing him to insist that no disloyalty against him was meant and asking that a suitable replacement be sent.
In the resulting battle, al-Fadl was defeated and he retreated back to al-Qayrawan; Ibn al-Jarud's army, however, pursued him and besieged the city for a short time.