Terrorism expert Magnus Ranstorp criticizes SR journalist Cecilia Uddén for her support of a controversial Gaza petition, questioning her reasoning as an afterthought. The petition, demanding press access to Gaza, has sparked debate for its language suggesting Swedish media legitimizes genocide. Uddén defends her stance on press freedom, but Ranstorp challenges the timeline of her justification.
Magnus Ranstorp Criticizes Cecilia Uddén Over Controversial Gaza Petition
Magnus Ranstorp Criticizes Cecilia Uddén
Terrorism expert Magnus Ranstorp has directed criticism at SR journalist Cecilia Uddén in an op-ed on SvD's editorial page. He questions the reasons Uddén provided for signing the controversial Gaza petition for journalists, describing them as an "afterthought."
The Gaza petition, published in Expressen on July 29, has sparked significant debate.
The petition demands that foreign journalists be allowed into Gaza but has been criticized for its wording, suggesting that Swedish media has "contributed to legitimizing" what is described as genocide. Critics argue that journalists who signed the petition have taken a stance in the conflict and therefore should not report on it.
One of the signatories is SR journalist Cecilia Uddén. She has stated that she agrees with the demands for press freedom in Gaza but acknowledged unfortunate wording in the petition.
In a well-attended debate at the Publicist Club, Cecilia Uddén said:
– I signed this petition a few days after our colleague Sami Abu Salem in Gaza wrote on Facebook: Why don't you Western journalists protest that you can't enter Gaza? And we had protested, but perhaps not forcefully enough. Then this petition came, and I thought it was relevant to protest against not being allowed in, against journalists being killed in Gaza. Those were the four points (the demands in the petition, editor's note) that were important to me.
In an editorial column in SvD, terrorism expert Magnus Ranstorp questions this. He writes that Sami Abu Salem's post was made two days after the Gaza petition was published.
"Uddén's account seems to rest on a reversed timeline and appears as an afterthought," Magnus Ranstorp notes.
He also criticizes SR's reporting, which he calls "one-sided," and claims that Abu Salem, in addition to working for several international media outlets, also reports for the Palestinian Authority's news agency Wafa.
"When SR presents a Wafa correspondent as a witness of truth, it is not independent journalism," Ranstorp writes.
Expressen has sought comments from Cecilia Uddén and Sveriges Radio's press chief Claes Bertilson, both of whom have declined to comment.