Israel’s blocking of a visit by Arab diplomats to the occupied West Bank demonstrated its “rejection of… a diplomatic path to peace,” Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said on Sunday. Ministers from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan and Bahrain, along with the Arab League chief, had planned a trip to the Palestinian territory, but Israel announced on Friday that it would not cooperate, effectively blocking the visit as it controls the area’s borders and airspace.

Speaking at a joint press conference in Amman with his Jordanian, Egyptian and Bahraini counterparts, Prince Faisal said Israel’s move “illustrates and confirms its extremism and its rejection of any serious attempt to engage in a diplomatic path towards peace… it is clear that they only want violence.” The minister added that the Arab states would continue to advocate for a two-state solution.

Al Jazeera