Cairo : The Arab League (AL) has welcomed the reconciliation deal signed in Cairo between Palestinian rival groups Fatah and Hamas.

In a statement on Thursday, the AL congratulated the Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian factions and the Palestinian people for reaching the agreement that would end a decade of political rift between the two mainstream Palestinian factions, Xinhua news agency reported.

The reconciliation is the main guarantee for achieving the Palestinian goals of freedom, independence, ending the Israeli occupation and establishing an independent state within the border of 1967, according to the statement.

Earlier on Thursday, the two groups agreed on a complete handover of Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip to the consensus government led by Prime Minister Rami al-Hamdallah by December 1.

Signed after two-day Egyptian-brokered talks, the agreement is considered as a resumption of a frozen reconciliation deal reached in the same city in 2011.

—IANS