CAIRO, Nov 3 (Aswat Masriya) - Egypt's foreign ministry spokesman expressed Monday strong condemnation of circulating news stating that the Israeli government has granted the "green light" to erect 500 settlements in East Jerusalem.

He also condemned recurring storming of al-Aqsa Mosque by Israeli forces and imposing restrictions on the Palestinians' freedom to exercise religious rituals inside the Mosque.

The decision is a blatant breach of international law and the four Geneva Conventions, which prohibit occupying forces from altering the geographic and demographic nature of lands held under occupation, the spokesman added in a statement on the ministry's official Facebook page.

Israeli practices are outright defiance of the Palestinian citizens' rights, which result in deepening hatred, and destruction of efforts to resume negotiations between the Palestinians and Israelis regarding the two-state solution and the establishment of a Palestinian state along the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital, the statement read.

The spokesman called upon the international community to condemn the Israeli practices and pressure Israel into halting them immediately.