A Fatah leader returned to the West Bank Wednesday after more than 40 years in exile.

Mohammed Ghneim was one of Fatah's last holdouts in the diaspora. Only three of Fatah's two dozen top leaders refused to return with then-Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat to the Palestinian territories after the 1993 Oslo Accords.

At the time, Ghneim said he would leave exile in Tunis only to enter a Palestinian state. Recently he relented.

On Wednesday, he was greeted in Ramallah by hundreds of activists.

He plans to run for a top post at next week's Fatah convention, the first in 20 years.

His return is a boost for Arafat successor, Mahmoud Abbas, who has come under harsh attack by another top Fatah exile, Farouk Kaddoumi, who accused him of poisoning his predecessor.