Flag of Palestine

The flag's layout places three horizontal bands of black, white, and green from top to bottom, with a red triangle extending from the flagstaff side into the center of the white band.[1] These four colors constitute the Pan-Arab palette shared by several Arab state flags.[2]

A Palestinian Authority account links each color to a specific Arab or Islamic historical tradition: red is associated with the Ashrafs of the Hijaz and the Hashemites; black with the Abbasid dynasty; white with the Umayyad dynasty; and green with the Fatimid dynasty and allegiance to Ali.[5] The Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs similarly interprets the colors through Arab and Islamic history—white for the Umayyad caliphate, red for the Hashemites, black for the Abbasid caliphate and Muhammad, and green for Islam—while arguing that this symbolism is not specific to Palestine but reflects broader pan-Arab and pan-Islamic heritage.[6] That characterization represents the Center's institutional viewpoint rather than an uncontested reading of the flag.

Because the flag contains a prominent red triangle, the Anti-Defamation League has noted that the inverted red triangle symbol carries overlapping meanings: it can function as a straightforward expression of support for Palestinian identity, but since October 2023 it has also appeared in propaganda and protest contexts associated with Hamas and violent Palestinian resistance, making the symbol's meaning context-dependent.[7]

A Palestinian Authority account attributes the flag's creation to Sharif Hussein, who designed it as the banner of the Arab Revolt in June 1916.[5] Palestinians are said to have raised it as the flag of the Arab national movement in 1917, and it was readopted at a Palestinian conference in Gaza in 1948, where it was recognized by the Arab League.[5] The PLO subsequently endorsed it at a Jerusalem conference in 1964.[5]

An analysis published by the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs argues that today's Palestinian flag was based on Hashemite flags first unfurled in the 1920s in Damascus as the flag of Hashemite Syria and in the Hashemite Kingdom of Hejaz.[6] According to that account, after the Hashemite kingdom in Damascus collapsed, officers who became part of the early Palestinian leadership returned to the territory they called "Southern Syria" and brought the flag with them; the Hashemite emirate east of the Jordan adopted the same design with a star.[6] A related commentary published by the Jerusalem Center for Foreign and Defense Affairs interprets the flag's pan-Arab and pan-Islamic dimensions as making it a reflection of the broader Arab nationalist movement rather than an exclusively Palestinian symbol.[8] This is an institutional interpretation, not an uncontested historical conclusion.

An IMPACT-se analysis of Palestinian elementary-school curricula characterizes the flag as "a version of the anti-Ottoman/pro-British Arab revolt featured in many Arab flags" while simultaneously identifying it, alongside the map of Palestine, as "perhaps the most important symbols of Palestinian identity imparted to students."[9]

Article 8 of the Palestinian Basic Law formally establishes the flag's status, specifying that it shall have four colors, conform to dimensions approved by the PLO, and serve as the official flag of Palestine.[3] The 1988 Palestinian National Council declaration of independence called on Palestinians to "rally around their Palestinian flag, to take pride in it and defend it," describing the flag as "the symbol of our liberty and dignity."[4]

In September 2015, the United Nations General Assembly adopted resolution A/RES/69/320 on raising the flags of non-member observer states, enabling the Palestinian flag to be displayed at UN Headquarters alongside member-state flags.[10][11] The flag was hoisted at UN Headquarters in New York on 30 September 2015, in a ceremony Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas declared "The Day of the Palestinian Flag."[12] The vote stood at 119 in favor, 8 against, and 45 abstentions; the United States, Canada, and Israel were among those voting against.[13][11] The measure was symbolic and did not itself grant Palestine full UN membership or sovereignty.[12][11]

Within Israel, the flag's legal status has been the subject of ongoing litigation. Israeli courts have not treated display of the Palestinian flag as categorically illegal: a 1994 Supreme Court decision rejected a petition to prosecute flag-wavers; a 2003 High Court ruling recognized the flag's significance as a sign of Palestinian national identity; a 2021 Magistrate's Court ruling stated that waving the flag was not an offense under Israeli law; and a 2023 High Court decision preserved that legal status while allowing police to assess risks of serious public harm.[14]

A 2023 U.S. Department of State human-rights report stated that waving a Palestinian flag was a criminal offense in Israel, but noted that a 2014 attorney general opinion limited enforcement to cases involving credible suspicion that the flag represented support for a terrorist organization or a high likelihood of serious disturbance of the peace.[15] Police prohibited the display of and confiscated Palestinian flags on multiple occasions during demonstrations, particularly in Jerusalem, and in some cases used force against protesters.[15] On 8 January 2023, National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir called for a public ban on displaying the flag, though no such order had been issued by year's end.[15] On 17 July 2023, the Association for Civil Rights in Israel petitioned the Supreme Court over flag confiscations; on 20 July the court rejected the petition on technical grounds while encouraging police to remind officers of the applicable procedures and examine individual complaints.[15]

The flag occupies a prominent place in the Palestinian Authority's school curriculum. A first-grade poem references the homeland's "flag hoisted," while a third-grade textbook states: "The Palestinian flag will be hoisted on the city's walls after the liberation from Israeli occupation, God willing."[9] The curriculum presents the flag alongside maps of Palestine as part of the cultural framework of Palestinian national identity, leading IMPACT-se researchers to identify the two symbols together as perhaps the most significant national emblems conveyed to Palestinian students.[9]

Within Palestinian political life, the flag is closely associated with Fatah and the Palestinian Authority. Other Palestinian factions have maintained their own distinct banners: Hamas, for instance, has used its green Muslim Brotherhood-associated flag rather than the Palestinian national flag when burying fallen fighters, underscoring the flag's particular identification with the nationalist rather than the Islamist strand of Palestinian politics.[16]

The flag is also displayed internationally as an expression of solidarity with Palestinians. A 2024 scholarly study examined the display of Palestinian flags by Celtic Football Club supporters in Scotland, noting that fans with no ethnic, national, or religious connection to the communities involved in the Arab-Israeli conflict—located more than 4,000 kilometers away—wave the flag to demonstrate backing for the Palestinian people.[17] A 2025 scholarly chapter observed that Celtic supporters have waved the Palestinian flag at matches in recent years, while Rangers supporters have responded by displaying the Israeli flag, with survey findings indicating that Celtic supporters viewed themselves as pro-Palestinian rather than antisemitic.[18] The chapter presents this dynamic as part of the way the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is represented through the broader Celtic–Rangers rivalry.

Several aspects of the flag's history and meaning are disputed. A Palestinian Authority account attributes the flag's design to Sharif Hussein and the Arab Revolt of 1916 and traces Palestinian use of it to the Arab national movement in 1917.[5] A Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs analysis instead argues that today's flag was based on Hashemite banners and was brought to the territory by officers who joined the early Palestinian leadership after the Hashemite kingdom in Damascus collapsed.[6] A related Jerusalem Center for Foreign and Defense Affairs commentary interprets the flag's symbolism as reflecting pan-Arab and pan-Islamic history rather than a distinct Palestinian national identity, though this remains a contested institutional viewpoint.[8]

The red triangle element of the flag has generated separate controversy since October 2023, when an inverted red triangle began appearing in Hamas propaganda and protest materials. The Anti-Defamation League has noted that the symbol consequently carries dual meanings: it may represent straightforward solidarity with Palestinians, or it may signal support for Hamas and violent resistance, depending on context.[7] The flag's use in Palestinian Authority school materials has also drawn scrutiny because a third-grade textbook connects its future display with "liberation from Israeli occupation."[9]