Denmark's FM to Asharq Al-Awsat: Two-State Solution Is Best Way to End Palestinian-Israeli Conflict

Denmark’s Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen speaks to Asharq Al-Awsat. (Turky al-Agili)
Denmark’s Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen speaks to Asharq Al-Awsat. (Turky al-Agili)
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Denmark's FM to Asharq Al-Awsat: Two-State Solution Is Best Way to End Palestinian-Israeli Conflict

Denmark’s Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen speaks to Asharq Al-Awsat. (Turky al-Agili)
Denmark’s Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen speaks to Asharq Al-Awsat. (Turky al-Agili)

Denmark’s Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen stressed that the best way to resolve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict lies in implementing the two-state solution.

In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat, he underscored Saudi Arabia’s pivotal role in the region given the joint visions towards several issues at hand, especially Syrian, Lebanese and Palestinian affairs.

Ending the Palestinian-Israeli conflict lies in implementing the two-state solution, he stated.

Moreover, he said that the displacement of the people of Gaza to other countries has been rejected by Egypt, Jordan and other nations.

It is important to ensure that the ceasefire agreement in Gaza remains on track and that the prisoner exchange take place, he went on to say.

On Saudi Arabia, Rasmussen noted that major opportunities for cooperation between the Kingdom and Denmark are available, citing the joint desire to bolster cooperation in various fields and increase trade and investment.

He hoped that the coming phase will witness the exploration of new opportunities between the countries.

In remarks to reporters in Riyadh on Sunday, the FM said the recent developments in Syria encourage Europe to positively work towards lifting the sanctions off Damascus.

More openness is needed from Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa towards regional and international solutions to the Syrian issue, he added.

On President Donald Trump’s demand on Denmark to cede Greenland to the US, Rasmussen said this issue is up to the people of Greenland and no one else.

He denied that the people were willing to cede to the US, saying there was a joint vision to contain the security situation.



UN Agency Says Israel Shuts 4 Schools in East Jerusalem

A boy stands outside the gate of the Kalandia vocational training center (KTC), run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), which was raided by Israeli forces earlier at the Qalandiya camp for Palestinian refugees in the occupied West Bank on February 18, 2025. (AFP)
A boy stands outside the gate of the Kalandia vocational training center (KTC), run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), which was raided by Israeli forces earlier at the Qalandiya camp for Palestinian refugees in the occupied West Bank on February 18, 2025. (AFP)
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UN Agency Says Israel Shuts 4 Schools in East Jerusalem

A boy stands outside the gate of the Kalandia vocational training center (KTC), run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), which was raided by Israeli forces earlier at the Qalandiya camp for Palestinian refugees in the occupied West Bank on February 18, 2025. (AFP)
A boy stands outside the gate of the Kalandia vocational training center (KTC), run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), which was raided by Israeli forces earlier at the Qalandiya camp for Palestinian refugees in the occupied West Bank on February 18, 2025. (AFP)

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees says Israeli forces raided four of its schools in east Jerusalem, ordering their closure.

Israel has severed all ties with the agency, known as UNRWA, and bars it from operating in its territory. It says the agency allowed itself to be infiltrated by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, allegations denied by UN officials.

UNRWA said police entered a training center by force on Tuesday, firing tear gas and sound grenades and ordering its evacuation. It said 350 students and 30 staff were present during the raid on the Qalandiya Training Center.

It said police and city officials ordered the closure of three other schools in east Jerusalem, two of which proceeded with the school day.

Israeli police spokesman Dean Elsdunne said police did not enter the UN buildings and that Jerusalem municipal authorities carried out the closures. He said police were deployed to protect the city workers, using “riot dispersal” means in one case where a crowd threw stones at them outside a UN facility.

Roland Friedrich, UNRWA director for the occupied West Bank, including east Jerusalem, said the raids were an “unacceptable violation of United Nations privileges and immunities,” and a “denial of the right to education for children and trainees.”