On Thursday, the Palestinian factions signed a reconciliation agreement, two days after meetings held between them in Algiers, committing to hold legislative and presidential elections within a year.

The 14 participating factions, including Hamas and Fatah movements, agreed on the "Algiers Declaration" document, and the heads of the delegations initialed it before the cameras of Algerian television.

In recent years, Fatah and Hamas have concluded several agreements and understandings stipulating the holding of elections and the formation of a unity government, among other things, but none of these were realized.

Prior to the signing ceremony, the Algerian and Palestinian national anthems were played in front of a large attendance of government members, leaders of Algerian parties, and ambassadors of Arab countries.

The declaration was signed at the "Palace of Nations" where the Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization, Yasser Arafat, announced on November 15, 1988, "the establishment of the Palestinian state," as pointed out by Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune.

The head of the Fatah movement delegation, Azzam Al-Ahmad, said from the podium: "We signed this declaration to get rid of this malignant cancer that has entered the Palestinian body, which is division."

He added: "We feel confident and optimistic that this declaration will be implemented and will not remain ink on paper."

He continued to Algerian television: "Palestinians have been divided for more than 15 years, and this has weakened our cause."

As for the leader of the Hamas movement, Ismail Haniyeh, he praised it as "a day of joy inside Palestine, Algeria, the entire Arab nation, and freedom lovers."

Haniyeh added: "But it is a day of sorrow inside the Zionist entity."

The Hamas website quoted the movement’s leader Ismail Haniyeh as saying: "We are comfortable regarding the Algiers meeting, and the dialogue between us was dominated by a positive atmosphere."