Abu Musab al-Zarqawi Organization (Iraq)

Al-Tawhid wa-l Jihad, Unity and Holy War

Last modified: 2005-08-06 by joe mcmillan
Keywords: shahada |
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Version 1

by Richard Knipel

Version 2

by Richard Knipel

• About the Flag

See also:

• Iraq
• Index of Iraq Pages

About the Flag

The militant group run by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, called "Unity and Holy War," is apparently using its own flag for display in hostage videos and other purposes. This is black, with Arabic writing in white, and a disc, in yellow or white. I guess that black may be based on the color of the Abbasid dynasty who formed a Sunni Islamic Iraq-based empire that was in conflict with Shiites, as Zarqawi's group is. According to the New York Times, the flag was discovered in Falluja's main police station after a February attack. It has also been used in videos of Korean, Turkish, Bulgarian and Filipino hostages. I have provided rough images of two versions I've seen in the media.
Richard Knipel, 11 July 2004

Both flags have the Shahada (Islamic creed) in different writing on top. I can't read the blurred bottom inscription in the first version, but in the second it says "al-tawhid" (unity) and "al-jihad" (holy war).
Dov Gutterman, 11 July 2004