Denmark's parliament rejected a proposal to recognize a Palestinian state on Tuesday, backing the government's view that the necessary conditions were not in place, despite a decision by Spain, Ireland and Norway to endorse independence.
Israel, which has found itself increasingly isolated after more than seven months of conflict with the Palestinian Hamas movement, which rules Gaza, has reacted furiously to the European moves.
The Danish bill had been proposed by four left-wing parties.
Sascha Faxe, member of parliament for The Alternative, said recognizing a Palestinian state was the only way to achieve lasting peace in the Middle East.
"The vast majority of Danish politicians agree that there will be no lasting peace in the Middle East without a two-state solution," she said in parliament, adding that she saw recognition as a way to give rights to ordinary Palestinians.
Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen had previously said the Danish government could not recognize a Palestinian state because it did not have a single functioning authority or control over its own territory.
Rasmussen did not take part in Tuesday's debate but has said he hopes Denmark will one day be able to give its backing to a Palestinian state.
Earlier, the University of Copenhagen said it would halt investment in companies that do business in the occupied West Bank amid student protests pressuring the campus to cut financial and institutional ties with Israel.
Hundreds of students began campus protests in early May to express their opposition to Israel's operations in Gaza that were triggered by deadly attacks by Hamas in Israel on Oct. 7. The students have demanded that the university cuts academic ties with Israel and divests from companies operating in occupied Palestinian territories.
The university will, as of May 29, divest its holdings worth a total of about 1 million Danish crowns ($145,810) in Airbnb, Booking.com and eDreams, it said in a post on social media platform X.
The university said it would work with fund managers to manage its investments and ensure they comply with a United Nations list of companies involved in illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
The University of Copenhagen has a yearly revenue of over 10 billion crowns, some of which is invested in bonds and equities.
Israel captured territories in the West Bank, east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip after winning a 1967 war with neighboring Arab states.
