Arab League chief says Israel blocked first foreign trip to Ramallah

The Arab League's new secretary general, Nabil Fahmy, says Israel blocked him from visiting Ramallah, in what would have been his first foreign trip since taking office this month.

The regional bloc's secretariat was informed by Palestinian authorities "of the Israeli occupation authorities' rejection of a visit... to the occupied Palestinian territories" to meet Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah, Fahmy's office said in a statement.

Abbas's administration governs parts of the occupied West Bank, which Israel has occupied since 1967.

Since Israel's genocide in Gaza began in 2023, the occupied West Bank has been rocked by Israeli military raids, deadly Isreali settler attacks and the expansion of settlements, which are illegal under international law.

Fahmy said Palestinians in the territory "suffer siege in their towns and cities, surrounded by expanding settlements and settler-only roads, and are subjected to the brutality and terrorism of settlers who enjoy both the protection and encouragement of the occupying state".