Danish justice minister tries to convince Kosovo to accept Danish prisoners 

Danish Justice Minister Peter Hummelgaard hopes to overcome the reluctance of opposition parties in Kosovo to vote in favour of leasing Denmark 300 prison places in the country.

To adopt international agreements in the Kosovan parliament requires a two-thirds majority – 80 mandates – with the country’s government on Thursday falling five votes short after failing to win the necessary support of opposition parties.

But only 75 of the members of parliament voted for the agreement with Denmark on Thursday, and therefore it was not adopted.

“This is a big priority for Denmark and a big priority for me,” he said. “That is why I am going to use my efforts to both hold the Kosovan government to the fire, but also to hold talks with the opposition parties in the run-up to the voting day,” he said. 

He said he would not rule out travelling to Kosovo to lobby opposition parties. 

Danish vocabulary: at overbevise – to convince 

Rigshospitalet finds mold in large parts of the children’s ward

Mould has been found in 39 out of 50 rooms examined at the Department for Children and Young People at Denmark’s Rigshospitalet, according to a statement by the hospital sent to the regional council in the Capital Region on Wednesday, reported by the Berlingske newspaper. 

“Spores from Aspergillus flavus were found in 39 out of 50 rooms examined, with the hospital writing that the “same conditions may apply on the same floor in other departments or elsewhere in the hospital”.

At the beginning of May, Berlingske wrote that mold in the Rigshospitalet’s buildings could for the first time be directly linked to a patient’s death.

An 11-year-old boy who was discharged in December 2nd, 2022, following successful chemotherapy for leukemia, died 8 days later because of a fungal infection. On April 25th this year, the family was awarded compensation for the loss of their son. 

Danish vocabulary: skimmelsvamp – mold

Police temporarily ban Bandidos and their patches

The police in Denmark have decided to impose a temporary ban on the rock club Bandidos MC in Denmark, with the ban imposed from Wednesday. The ban will mean all Bandidos club clubhouses must be closed and it will be illegal to wear patches or other clothes and items featuring the Bandidos insignia. 

At the same time, the authorities, including the Debt Agency, have launched a special effort against members of the Bandidos.

“We are chasing the money,” said prosecutor, Lasse Boje, at a press conference.

Danish vocabulary: at forbyde – to ban  

Danish foreign minister rejects calls to recognise Palestine 

Denmark’s Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen has said that he is against recognising Palestine, as he does not beleive doing so will help bring peace to the troubled region. 

“We have different assessments of what role different countries should play,” he said after Norway, Ireland and Spain announced they would join Sweden in recognising Palestine. 

“Sweden recognized Palestine a few years ago, and it did not create any momentum. A number of other countries have done it without any two-state solution coming out of it,” he said. 

He said, in his opinion Palestine would need to have control over its own territory and functioning authorities to qualify as a state, and “that is not the situation right now”. 

Danish vocabulary: anerkendelse – recognition

Fire at Novo Nordisk HQ outside Copenhagen now ‘under control’

The fire at an administrative building at Novo Nordisk’s headquarters in Bagsværd is now “under control”, Copenhagen fire services have said.

“After hours of hard work in the blazing sun, we have brought the fire under control,” Rasmus Storgaard, who is leading the emergency services’ efforts to extinguish the fire, told the broadcaster TV2.

He said that his 70-strong team were now waiting for cranes that could help with the clean-up and extinguishing work, but that most of the necessary equipment and personnel were now in place, with some 20 fire engines involved.

“With the capabilities that are now in the fight, you will probably see more or less normal operations out here again tomorrow,” he said. 

Danish vocabulary: under kontrol – under control