Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday applauded the Czech Republic for its "friendship and courage" as the only European state to have opposed Palestine's status upgrade at the United Nations.

Prague joined allies Israel, the United States and Canada in opposing the Palestinian status bid. The U.N. General Assembly on Thursday approved non-member observer status for Palestine by an overwhelming vote of 138 against nine, with 41 abstentions.

Egypt's foreign ministry on Tuesday summoned Israel's ambassador to Cairo, Yaakov Amitai, to issue a "strong protest" over the Jewish state's plans for new settlements, a ministry spokesman said.

Alaa Eldine Yussef, who heads the Israeli affairs section at the ministry, told the envoy that "the Israeli government's plan contradicts the concept of land for peace, on which peace efforts in the region are built," spokesman Amr Roshdy said.

The European Union is unlikely to use trade sanctions to punish Israel over its plans to build new settlements, British Foreign Secretary William Hague said on Tuesday.

Hague repeated his condemnation of the "illegal" settlements on occupied Palestinian territory and urged Israeli politicians to "listen very carefully" to international diplomatic pressure on the issue.

Israel had no reason to oppose Palestine's U.N. observer state membership, according to ex-prime minister Ehud Olmert, who plans to announce Wednesday whether he will run in the next polls.

"I have made my decision and I will announce it in two days," Olmert told Agence France Presse of his political future, after a speech in New York late Monday during which he renewed criticism of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's handling of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Israel's decision to build new homes between east Jerusalem and Maaleh Adumim settlement is controversial plan which, if enacted, would cut the West Bank in half and threaten the viability of a future Palestinian state.

The decision, which was taken last week by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, relates to construction in a corridor of land in the West Bank which runs between the easternmost edge of annexed east Jerusalem and Maaleh Adumim -- which is known as East 1, or E1 for short.

French President Francois Hollande said Monday he was worried by Israel's plans to build new settlements in east Jerusalem and the West Bank, but indicated Paris was not ready to back concerted punishment in response.

"We do not want to start thinking in terms of sanctions," Hollande said during a Franco-Italian summit in Lyon.

Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat hailed on Monday the international community's “unprecedented historic step” in recognizing the state of Palestine.

He said in his weekly editorial in the PSP-affiliated al-Anbaa magazine: “The decision should help the Palestinians continue their struggle to establish their independent state away from the empty slogans of defiance issued by regimes that have spoken of liberating the whole of Palestine without lifting a finger to so for decades.”

Three Israeli settlers were arrested on Monday on suspicion of having carried out a string of "price-tag" attacks against Palestinian property, Israeli police said.

"The police arrested three suspects in their 20s after they were involved in criminal incidents with nationalistic motives," said police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld.

U.N. leader Ban Ki-moon warned Sunday that if Israeli implemented its latest plan for new settlements it would deal an "almost fatal blow" to any prospects for peace with the Palestinians.

Israel's announcement about the 3,000 Jewish settler homes, whose planned location was not revealed, came in the wake of a historic vote by the United Nations General Assembly to upgrade Palestine's diplomatic status.

Israel must provide an "immediate and detailed explanation" for its targeting of journalists and media buildings during last month's Gaza conflict, the Committee to Protect Journalists said on Sunday.

In a letter to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the watchdog said it was "gravely concerned that Israeli airstrikes targeted individual journalists and media facilities in the Gaza Strip between November 18 and 20."