Shortly after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the White House to get its facts straight about construction plans in East Jerusalem, Washington came back with a response of its own.

The White House and State Department sharply criticized Israel on Wednesday after it was announced that 2,610 new homes would be built in East Jerusalem.

The new homes, which are to be inhabited by Jewish and Arab residents in the Givat Hamatos neighborhood, would “draw condemnation from the international community, distance Israel from even its closest allies and poison the atmosphere.”

In response, Netanyahu told reporters, “It’s worth learning the information properly before deciding to take a position like that.” The prime minister issued the response mere hours after meeting with US President Barack Obama at the White House.

Netanyahu told Andrea Mitchell from NBC News the same evening, “I think the important thing is to just get the facts right. I mean start with the facts.”

Speaking to Univision, Netanyahu explained, “If you said to me that in some city in the United States or Mexico, or anywhere else, Jews cannot but apartments, there would be an uproar.”

State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki defended the US’s stance on Thursday, saying that the US was very aware of the situation in East Jerusalem. She revealed that sources in Jerusalem have been providing the government with up to date information on construction plans.

When questioned whether the State Department was out of line for issuing such a critical and harsh response, Psaki emphasized that the comments “were responsive to a situation on the ground” and not connected with the recent meeting between Netanyahu and Obama.

Psaki refused to answer whether the US would take any further action other than publicly condemning Israel, answering that “Israel remains a friend and ally” despite warning she issued the day before saying that Israel’s building will “distance their closes allies.”

Construction plans for the Givat Hamatos neighborhood were first approved more than two years ago. Wednesday’s announcement was the final approval in a long, draw out process to begin building in what is a highly contested area by Israel and the Palestinians.

Israel says the land where the neighborhood is to be built is territory that was already annexed by the government. The Palestinians claim the area is crucial to a future Palestinian state.

Psaki condemned the construction plans as “settlement activity,” saying “the fact that there are multiple stages in the process, that face that it continued [is a] cause for concern.”

On Thursday, France issued its own condemnation of Israel, with its Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius calling the project a “direct threat” to the two-state solution.