When the Swedish public service wanted to inform the Swedish people about UNFIL’s mission on the border between Israel and Lebanon, they invited a so-called expert as usual. But the expert’s statements are disputed. Is the professor ignorant, or is she lying?

When the tax-funded Sveriges Television (SVT; Swedish Television), whose mission is to convey impartial and factual news, last Sunday was to inform the Swedish people about the situation on the border between Israel and Lebanon, they invited an expert as usual. This expert turned out to be Lisa Hultman, professor of peace and conflict studies at Uppsala University, who has been hired on several occasions by both SVT and SR during the year since the Hamas terrorist attacks on October 7, 2023.

Just over a year later, Hultman was entrusted to explain the mission that rests with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).

UNFIL is in the news after Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu on Sunday asked UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to order the evacuation of UNFIL troops from posts in southern Lebanon, something Guterres rejected. Netanyahu believes that Gutierre’s decision in practice means that the UN provides Hezbollah with human shields in the form of UN soldiers.

But withdrawing the UNFIL forces would be a defeat for peacekeeping operations, says Hultman, who is asked three questions by SVT: What is the role of the soldiers, why does Netanyahu want the soldiers to leave Lebanon and will the UN withdraw from Lebanon ?

Avoiding the facts about Resolution 1701

During the news segment, Lisa Hultman does mention that there is “a mission from the Security Council” but without explaining what the mandate according to Security Council Resolution 1701 entails. Instead, she presents it as UNIFIL being there to guard the border, protect civilians in southern Lebanon against Israel and “try to force the parties to stick to agreements”.

According to Hultman, Netanyahu has asked UNFIL to evacuate, because “he wants to be able to wage war in southern Lebanon without the UN being there and getting in the way” and she emphasizes that it is unusual for “states to attack UN troops”. Lisa Hultman believes that UNFIL is at the border at all “an agreement between Israel and Lebanon” and a withdrawal in accordance with Netanyahu’s request would, according to Hultman, mean “a defeat for peacekeeping operations in the world”.

UNFIL’s mission: To protect Israel

A reasonable conclusion is that the majority of news consumers, after listening to the interviewed expert, understood that UNFIL’s mission is to protect Lebanese civilians from the aggressive state of Israel. But UNFIL’s mission is to protect Israel. On the website of the organization Med Israel för fred (MIFF; With Israel for Peace), MIFF’s communications manager Ulf Cahn explains how things actually are:

“Security Council Resolution 1559 of 2004 called for the disbandment and disarmament of all Lebanese and non-Lebanese militias in southern Lebanon. Lebanon’s own military would be the only military troops in the area. It may seem obvious that there should be only one military force, the country’s own , in a state, but it wasn’t like that in Lebanon and it still isn’t like that.

The resolution has not been complied with by Lebanon and UNIFIL has not ensured its compliance.

According to Security Council Resolution 1701:

• Lebanon must exercise power over its entire territory. The promise has been broken, Hezbollah controls large areas.
• No weapons without the approval of the Lebanese authorities must be in southern Lebanon and the borders must be secured so that weapons cannot be imported to Hezbollah. The promise has been broken, Hezbollah has built up a rocket stockpile of at least 150,000, and a formidable guerrilla force.
• Lebanon must keep the area between the “blue line” (the armistice line to Israel) and the Litani River free of “”personnel, military installations and weapons”” that do not belong to the authorities or the UN force UNIFIL. The promise has been broken, Hezbollah has military positions right up to the border.
• The UN resolution promised that a reinforced UN force (up to 15,000 people) would help Lebanon keep southern Lebanon free of weapons and military forces that did not belong to the Lebanese Defense Forces. The promise is broken. UNIFIL does not patrol the villages in the area to stop the arming of the terrorist organization Hezbollah. As early as 2010, Hezbollah was back with considerable strength, which only grew.
• The UN resolution required all states to prevent the sale of arms and military equipment to militia groups in Lebanon. This promise has been broken, especially by Iran, but also by other countries.

Now we see how southern Lebanon has become a terrorist base against Israel. In front of UNIFIL’s armed forces, Hezbollah has built tunnels adjacent to the border with Israel, launch pads and other military infrastructure in an area UNIFIL is responsible for. The Lebanese arm has been chased away by Hezbollah.

When Israel returns Hezbollah fire from its posts in the vicinity of UNIFIL guard positions, UNIFIL places the blame on Israel.”

Is the expert ignorant, or a liar?

Ulf Cahn ends his text by giving SVT’s so-called expert an uppercut. If, on the one hand, Lisa Hultman does not know UNFIL’s mission and the meaning of Security Council Resolution 1701, then, according to Cahn, she should not be interviewed and should not speak as if she were an expert on the subject. If, on the other hand, she really possesses the knowledge of UNIFIL’s mission in southern Lebanon, she is deliberately lying. “Which is worst?”, asks Ulf Cahn.

Yes, which is worse? For SVT, it probably doesn’t matter much. They knew what they were getting when they invited Hultman as an expert – she has previously participated in SVT to defend Hamas in Gaza. In a news item broadcast on November 13, Hultman expressed doubt that wiping out Hamas will lead to peaceful development. Fighting the terrorist organization could instead create greater support for them, Hultman said, and she was clear about how she viewed the question of guilt:

– Hamas’s terrorist act struck the Israeli civilian population, which was punished for the policies of the Israeli state. And regardless of Israel’s intentions, the civilian population in Gaza is now being punished for Hamas’ terrorist acts, said Lisa Hultman at the time.

Misleading or anti-Semitic?

Albert Einstein is said to have said that “only two things are infinite – the universe and human stupidity”. Possibly we can add a third: Israel-hatred in Swedish public service.

According to SVT, the public service mission involves providing “factual and unbiased information”, and the programs produced “must be characterized by democratic and humanistic values, public education ambitions, diversity and quality”. How well the mission actually fulfilled is debatable, but the image conveyed by Israel and the nation’s Jewish population is becoming increasingly clear: Israel is the only nation that must never win a war, while the world’s (and especially Israel’s) Jews must never be strong and capable of defending themselves.

It is sad that Swedish taxpayers are forced to pay for a news outlet which – at best – is misleading, but which – in many cases – reeks of anti-Semitism.