Old Video From The Arbaeen Walk Going Viral As Palestinians Carrying Indian Flag To Escape From Israeli Attack

Recently a video has been forwarded to our 24X7 Factline number 9049053770. The video shows a group of women wearing the burka and marching forward holding the tricolour. It has been claimed that these women are Palestinians, and they are carrying the Indian flag to escape from Israel’s attack. 

Archived Link.

However, as we investigated, we came to know that the claim was false. The video is not related to the Israel-Palestine war. Here’s the fact check.

Fact CheckWe started our investigation by taking some screenshots from the viral video and conducting a reverse image search. This led us to a video uploaded on a YouTube channel on 6 September 2023. The video was the same as the viral video. The caption of the video reads, “With Indian Flag In Karbala”. The hashtags used were “#indianflag, #arbaeen, #arbaeenwalk2023”.

YouTube Link.

The same video was uploaded on Instagram too. The Instagram video was uploaded on 4 September 2023. The caption mentioned it to be “Arbaeen walk 2023”.

Instagram Link.

We found the same video on another Instagram handle uploaded on 31 August 2023. There too the caption was “Arabeen walk 2023”

Instagram Link 

It is to be noted that the Israel-Hamas conflict started in October 2023, and the video is available on the internet at least from 31 August 2023. 

What is Arbaeen?

For Shia Muslims, Arbaeen is a significant religious event that brings hundreds of thousands of faithful to the streets of the holy city of Karbala in Iraq. The event signifies the end of a 40-day mourning period for the Prophet Muhammad’s grandson, Hussein ibn Ali, the third imam of the Shia tradition. Every year, on the twentieth of Safar, also known as Arbaeen, millions of pilgrims flock to Karbala, Iraq, often arriving there on foot from the nearby city of Najaf.

This makes it clear that the viral video is not related to the Israel-Hamas conflict. The conflict started on 7 October 2023, and the video has been on the Internet at least since 31 August 2023.

Conclusion 

From our investigation, we can say that the claim is false. The viral video is from Arbaeen Walk 2023. This has no link to the Israel-Hamas conflict and this does not show Palestinians carrying the Indian flag to escape from Israeli attack. The Israel-Hamas conflict started on 7 October 2023 and the video is there on the Internet at least since 31 August 2023.