Iranian citizens and diaspora members have increasingly displayed Israeli flags as a defiant act of protest against the Islamic Republic regime. Instances include an Iranian man holding the Israeli flag at Tehran’s Azadi Tower, projections onto buildings, and students waving them in Tehran, symbolizing a desire for freedom, solidarity with Israel, and rejection of the current government.
Videos from early 2026 show the Israeli flag projected onto buildings in the Ekbatan district of Tehran and displayed on a bridge in the city.
In Dec 2024, a young man was filmed holding the flag at Azadi Square in Tehran.
Iranian college students have been reported waving both American and Israeli flags inside Iran, dancing and celebrating in March 2026.
Zoroastrianism and Jews friendship
Before Islam, the primary religion in Iran for over a millennium was Zoroastrianism, a monotheistic and dualistic faith centered on the supreme deity Ahura Mazda and the teachings of the prophet Zoroaster. It served as the state religion during the Achaemenid, Parthian, and Sasanian empires until the 7th-century Arab-Muslim conquest
Iranian activists, such as “Miss Grand Iran” in London, have displayed the flag at anti-regime rallies to show solidarity.
These actions represent a significant shift, with many Iranians distinguishing their identity from the policies of the ruling regime.
Images from Free Iran protests around the world have drawn attention: alongside Iranian flags and the historic Lion and Sun emblem, Israeli flags are being carried by demonstrators. To many observers, this combination appears unexpected, given decades of hostility between Israel and Iran’s clerical rulers.
For many Iranians, however, the symbolism is deliberate. The flags represent rejection — not of Iran’s identity, but of the Islamic regime that has ruled through repression, ideological hostility and violence for more than four decades.
A nation under fire
Protests erupted across Iran in late 2025, initially driven by economic hardship, corruption and political frustration. They rapidly evolved into nationwide demonstrations calling for an end to clerical rule, drawing participation from workers, students, women and ethnic minorities across major cities.
The state response has been brutal. According to the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), at least 6,842 people have been confirmed killed in connection with the protests, including protesters, bystanders and children. HRANA has also identified more than 11,000 additional suspected deaths still under investigation, as internet blackouts and restrictions on independent reporting continue to hinder verification.
Tens of thousands of Iranians have been arrested, while reports of torture, enforced disappearances and summary executions continue to emerge from inside the country.
The protest movement has also been portrayed by state media and regime-aligned commentators as being directed by foreign intelligence agencies, including Israel’s Mossad. Within the protest movement, these claims are widely rejected. Framing the uprising as foreign-orchestrated risks minimising the grievances that brought millions of Iranians into the streets. The demonstrations have been driven by domestic realities — economic collapse, political repression and the loss of life at the hands of security forces. For families of those killed or detained, attributing the protests to external actors is often viewed as diminishing the human cost paid by ordinary citizens.
Activists and opposition networks report that the regime has relied not only on domestic security forces, but also on foreign fighters linked to Iran-backed militias from Iraq, Lebanon and other parts of the region. While the regime denies deploying non-Iranian forces, eyewitness testimony and video footage suggest their involvement in suppressing civilian protests — fuelling public outrage that the regime is willing to import violence to maintain power.
The meaning behind Israeli flags
The appearance of Israeli flags at Free Iran protests — particularly at diaspora and international rallies — has drawn global attention. The symbolism is not necessarily an endorsement of Israeli government policy. Rather, it reflects a deeper rejection of the Islamic regime’s longstanding narrative that defines Iran through permanent hostility toward Israel and the West.
For protesters, the flags represent defiance against a system that has poured national wealth into foreign conflicts while crushing dissent at home. They also point to a shared history that predates the Islamic Republic by centuries.
Iran has historically been home to one of the largest Jewish communities in the Middle East outside Israel, and today maintains the region’s largest remaining Jewish population beyond Israel. Prior to the creation of the State of Israel in 1948, Iran is believed to have hosted the largest Jewish population in the region outside historic Jewish homelands.
That relationship stretches back more than 2,500 years to Cyrus the Great, founder of the Persian Empire. Cyrus is revered in Jewish history for freeing Jews from Babylonian captivity and allowing them to return to Jerusalem to rebuild their temple. He is uniquely recognised in the Hebrew Bible as a divinely appointed liberator — the only non-Jewish figure described as a messiah.
For many demonstrators, these historical ties reinforce a broader message: Iranian identity is older, richer and more pluralistic than the ideology imposed by the Islamic regime. The flags therefore, serve as both a rejection of enforced hostility and a reminder of a different vision for Iran’s future.
Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi: a unifying symbol
Another striking feature of the protest movement has been the resurgence of chants invoking Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi. These chants have been widely heard at international rallies and,
despite extreme repression, have also appeared in verified footage from inside Iran.
The chants are best understood as symbolic rather than prescriptive. For many protesters, invoking Pahlavi reflects a longing for unity, national sovereignty and leadership outside the clerical establishment — not necessarily a call for monarchy, but a rejection of the current system.
Crown Prince Pahlavi has consistently framed the movement as one for democracy, human rights and self-determination, urging peaceful resistance and international solidarity. The visibility of his name underscores a growing search for credible alternatives to clerical rule and a widening rejection of religious authoritarianism.
A vision beyond the Islamic regime
The Free Iran movement is about more than flags or slogans. It is a nationwide demand for dignity, accountability and freedom — and an end to a system sustained by violence and fear.
The imagery seen at protests reflects a population reclaiming its identity and future. Whether through historic symbols, calls for unity or appeals to the international community, the message is clear: Iran does not belong to the Islamic regime. It belongs to its people.
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