CAIRO - Egypt condemned an Israeli decision to construct 1,100 Jewish settlers homes in East Jerusalem and called the move a "provocation". "This step reflects an Israeli choice to continue in its provocative policies and to challenge everyone in the international community that sees settlement construction as illegitimate," Foreign Minister Mohamed Kamel Amr said in a statement. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas applied at the United Nations on Friday for full Palestinian membership, a move opposed by Israel and the United States, which urged him to resume peace negotiations. Abbas says he will not do so unless Israel agrees to stop building new settlements in occupied territory. Relations between Israel and Egypt have grown more tense since the overthrow of President Hosni Mubarak, a strategic ally of Israel and its main backer the United States, in February.