Palestinian flag

Proportions 1:2

The Palestinian flag (Arabic: علم فلسطين) was originally designed by Sharif Hussein for the Arab revolt against the Ottoman Empire in 1916. In 1917, it was raised as the flag of the Arab National movement. On October 18, 1948, the all-Palestine Government readopted the flag in Gaza and the Arab League subsequently recognized it as the flag of the Palestinian people. It was again officially adopted as the flag of the Palestinian people by the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in 1964. On November 15, 1988 the PLO adopted the flag as the flag of the State of Palestine. Today there is widespread use of this flag to represent the Palestinian Authority administered areas.

The flag is constituted of three equal horizontal stripes (black, white and green from top to bottom) overlaid by a red isosceles triangle issuing from the hoist and reaching one third of the way to the fly. (See Pan-Arab colors.) The flag is almost identical to that of the Baath Party and very similar to the flags of Western Sahara, Sudan and Jordan.

Description and meaning

White are our deeds, black are our battles,
Green are our fields, red are our knives.
(Safi al-Din al-Hili, poet)

Red:

Used by the Khwarij party, red was also the colour of the Arab tribes who participated in the conquest of North Africa and Andalusia. The colour red was also later adopted by the Islamic rulers of Andalusia (756–1355). Today, the colour is associated with the Ashrafs of the Hejaz and the Hashemites.

Black:

Since pre-Islamic times, the black flag has been a symbol of revenge and of war. The Abbasid Dynasty (750–1258) adopted black as their flag to mourn the assassination of relatives of Mohammad and in remembrance of the Battle of Karbala.

White:

The Umayyad Dynasty (661–750) used white as their colour, also as a sign of mourning and reminder of Mohammad's first battle at Badr. Today, white is the colour associated with monarchist movements.

Green:

Green was the colour of the Fatimid Dynasty, adopted in allegiance to Mohammad's cousin Ali, who once disguised himself in a green coverlet in order to evade an attempt on his life.

Ban

In 1967, the state of Israel banned the Palestinian flag and forbade the production of artwork composed of its four colors. In Israeli public opinion there had been a prolonged debate on whether or not the ban applied to peace movement using the flags of Israel and Palestine combined, such as Gush Shalom. On some occasion activists wearing badges with such symbols were detained by police, but were not prosecuted.

Since the signing of the Oslo Peace Accords in 1993, the ban has been relaxed, but is still occasionally enforced.^[1][2]

Notes

1. ^ Israel and the occupied territories. 2002 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices. US Department of State.}
2. ^ Muhammad Hallaj (March 1982). Palestine — The Suppression of an Idea. The Link - Volume 15, Issue 1. Americans for Middle East Understanding.

External link

• The Meaning of the Flag
• Monarchist Flag of Palestine

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