What does the black flag that Iran has hung on the sacred shrine of Imam Reza mean?

These are dark days for the world since the conflict between Hamas and Israel intensified on October 7, with the surprise attack carried out by the Islamic Resistance Movement on the State of Israel and this, for its part, responded harshly in Loop.

Now, in addition, the conflict resonates from east to west and the world seems to be waiting for the next movements, while demonstrations in favor of the Palestinians and against the war do not stop happening.

In Iran, early Wednesday morning, a day after the bombing of the Al Ahli Hospital in Gaza, the sacred shrine of Imam Reza dawned with a black flag with Arabic inscriptions raised on its dome. The images have gone around the world and many wonder what message there is behind that symbol.

A call to war and revenge

Panic has spread on social networks because, according to Islamic tradition, raising a black flag has connotations of war and revenge, which for many is a call to arms.

However, it could be a misunderstanding, since the flag that the Iranian State has hung is not the same as the jihadist flag, which has been used by Islamist and fundamentalist movements as a symbol of jihad and consists of the Black Banner with a text white Shahada (Islamic declaration of faith) stamped in calligraphic style letters.

A symbol of mourning

Despite the debate that has been generated on social networks and the growing fear that the flag hanging in the sanctuary of Iran is producing, some people defend that this is not a call to war, but rather a symbol of mourning in the Shia Islam.

What's more, they allege that it has been raised as a symbol of solidarity with the Palestinian people after the bombing of the hospital, which has killed more than 500 people.