EU foreign affairs chief Federica Mogherini on Wednesday condemned Israel's plans to build another 500 settler homes in annexed East Jerusalem, ahead of her first visit to the Jewish state later this week.

Going ahead with the new settler homes risks undermining efforts to get the Middle East peace process back on track, Mogherini said.

Israeli plans for roughly 500 new settler homes in occupied east Jerusalem are a "slap in the face" of the United States and the international community, a top Palestinian official said.

Israel approved construction of the homes on Monday as chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat met U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry in the United States, according to settlements watchdog Peace Now.

Israeli police arrested at least 23 Palestinians in east Jerusalem overnight and during Monday, Palestinian officials said, in the latest crackdown after months of violent clashes in the Holy City.

But a police spokeswoman confirmed only four arrests, without accounting for the number of people who might have been arrested by other security services.

The Arab League warned Sunday that Israel has reached a "red line" after fresh clashes in Jerusalem, urging international pressure to stop what it branded "violations" in the holy city.

Clashes around the flashpoint al-Aqsa mosque compound -- the third holiest site in Islam and Judaism's holiest -- prompted Israel on Thursday to close the site for a day.

The United States on Thursday urged all sides in Jerusalem to exercise restraint amid spiraling tensions in the holy city, and said it was working with Israelis, Palestinian and Jordanians to try to restore calm.

Secretary of State John Kerry also condemned the shooting of hardline rabbi Yehuda Glick, who holds both Israeli and U.S. citizenship.

The United States urged all sides in Jerusalem to exercise restraint amid spiraling tensions in the holy city, and was working with Israelis, Palestinian and Jordanians to try to restore calm.

State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki also condemned the shooting of hardline rabbi Yehuda Glick, who holds both Israeli and U.S. citizenship.

Sunni Islam's top institution, al-Azhar, said Israel's closure of the al-Aqsa mosque compound in annexed east Jerusalem on Thursday was a "barbaric" act that fueled religious conflict.

Israel said its closure of Islam's third holiest site, which is also holy to Jews, was temporary and aimed at calming tempers after police shot dead a Palestinian accused of trying to kill a Jewish hardliner.

Jordan on Thursday accused Israel of "state terrorism" after it closed Jerusalem's flashpoint Al-Aqsa mosque compound, the third holiest site in Islam.

Israel said its closure of the shrine, which is also holy to Jews, was temporary and aimed at calming tempers after police shot dead a Palestinian accused of trying to kill a Jewish hardliner.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry hit out Thursday at reported insults by an American official against the Israeli prime minister, saying it was "disgraceful, unacceptable and damaging."

Kerry also pledged that the United States would continue to work "quietly and effectively" in order to relaunch the peace process with the Palestinians in a thoughtful and even-handed way, saying it was "doable."

The flashpoint Al-Aqsa mosque compound in east Jerusalem, at the heart of the latest tensions in the Holy City, is a highly sensitive site sacred to both Muslims and Jews.

The plaza is a 14-hectare (35-acre) rectangular esplanade at the southeast corner of the Old City which was seized by Israel during the 1967 Six-Day War and later annexed in a move never internationally recognized.