Amid the departure of Palestinians from Northern Gaza following Israel’s evacuation order, a video depicting a group of Muslim women walking by holding Indian flags is being widely shared on social media claiming that it shows Palestinians using the Indian flag to avoid Israeli attacks. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Visuals of Palestinian women fleeing Northern Gaza by holding Indian flags in order to escape from Israel attack.
Fact: The footage features Indian pilgrims holding Indian flags during their journey to the city of Karbala in Iraq for the Arbaeen Walk of 2023, which took place in the first week of September 2023. It bears no relation to the Israel-Hamas conflict that occurred in October 2023. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
A reverse image search of the viral video led us to the same footage, posted on YouTube and Instagram during the first week of September 2023, a month prior to the recent Israel-Hamas conflict. The video descriptions suggest that they capture scenes from the Arbaeen Walk of 2023.
The Arbaeen Walk, one of the world’s largest annual public gatherings, saw approximately 25 million participants from around the globe in 2023. This pilgrimage, which took place on 06 September 2023, marks a religious observance at the conclusion of the 40-day mourning period following Ashura. Ashura is a religious ritual that commemorates the death of Hussein Ibn Ali, the grandson of Prophet Muhammad and the third Shia Imam. The walk involves millions of people from around the world journeying to the city of Karbala in Iraq, where Hussein ibn Ali’s shrine is situated.
Further examination revealed several visuals (here, here, here) of other Indian pilgrims carrying the Indian flag and draping it over their shoulders during the event.
To sum it up, an unrelated video from the Arbaeen Walk of 2023 is being circulated with the claim that it shows Palestinians carrying the Indian flag to evade Israeli attacks.
