JERUSALEM — Israel's prime minister is defending his decision to expand construction in east Jerusalem.

Benjamin Netanyahu says it is Israel's "right" and "duty" to build in all parts of its capital.

Israel captured east Jerusalem along with the West Bank in the 1967 war. Palestinians claim that section of the city as their future capital.

On Tuesday, Netanyahu's office said 2,000 new apartments would be built in Jewish areas of east Jerusalem. Officials said the move was an Israeli response to recent unilateral steps by the Palestinians, particularly its acceptance in the U.N. cultural agency UNESCO.

Speaking at parliament Wednesday, Netanyahu pledged to keep building in east Jerusalem. He said this was not punishment, but "the basic right of our people to build in its eternal city."

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel's education ministry has shut down a religious high school in an ultranationalist settlement in the West Bank and has cut off funding to an adult seminary there, saying students and staff have been involved in violence against Palestinians and the Israeli military.

Education Ministry director Shimon Shoshani told Israel Radio on Wednesday that what happened at the seminaries in Yitzhar was "inconsistent with Jewish, democratic and educational values."

Israeli media cited Yitzhar officials as saying studies will continue at both the high school and the adult seminary.

Rabbis associated with the seminaries had written a controversial book, denounced by more moderate Orthodox Jews, justifying the killing of Palestinians under certain circumstances.