L'Iraq adotta una nuova banidera

[GioFX]

U.S.-Picked Iraq Leaders Approve New Flag

By LEE KEATH
Associated Press Writer

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) -- Iraq's U.S.-picked leaders approved a new flag for the country, dumping Saddam Hussein's red-and-black standard. The new design is white with two blue stripes, and although it has a crescent representing Islam, the flag no longer bears the words "God is great."

The new design not only abandons the symbols of Saddam's regime. It also avoids the colors used in other Arab flags: green and black for Islam and red for Arab nationalism. The change recalls the U.S. agenda of creating a "New Iraq" that is exceptional in the Arab world.

The flag, designed by an Iraqi artist and approved by the Governing Council, has two parallel blue stripes along the bottom with a yellow stripe in between.

The blue stripes represent the Tigris and Euphrates rivers and - because the river basin is Iraq's Arab heartland - therefore symbolize the country's Sunni and Shiite Arabs. The yellow stripe represents Iraq's ethnic Kurd minority, taking its color from the yellow star on the flag of Kurdistan.

Above the stripes, in a white field, is a blue crescent of Islam.

The only country in the Middle East with blue stripes in its flag is Israel, which has a Star of David on a field of white between horizontal blue bands.

Council spokesman Hameed al-Kafaei said the designer, artist Rifat al-Chaderchi, was asked to touch up the color of the crescent, perhaps to a darker blue or a different color. The final version will be announced later this week.

"This is a new era," al-Kafaei said. "We cannot continue with Saddam's flag."

But the overhaul of a national symbol raised some complaints - particularly since it came from U.S.-appointed leaders. U.S. administrators previously tried to alter the Saddam-era flag by dropping the words "Allahu akbar" - "God is great" - but Iraqis refused to abide by the change.

One council member said the Iraqi leadership should wait for an elected government before altering the Saddam regime standard, which still decorates the uniforms of Iraqi security forces and flies above government buildings.

"In my opinion, it should be not be passed until we have a parliament," Mahmoud Othman said. "I think there are issues more important to concentrate on now than the changing of the flag."

The old Iraq flag had red and black bands across the top and bottom, and a white band in between with three green stars. During the 1980s Iran-Iraq war, Saddam added the words "Allahu akbar" to boost the religious credentials of his secular regime.

The new design appeared on the front pages of the Al-Sabah newspaper Monday.

"It is the real model as it represents all spectrum of the Iraqi society," said one Iraqi, Mohammed Faris.

Others were less sure.

"I don't like the new one," said Dhia Assi, a bakery owner. "The old one used to make me feel revolutionary. I feel this one belongs to another country."

Riad al-Saadi, 33, called the new flag "meaningless."

"After we added 'Allahu akbar' to the old flag, we became more proud of it. The crescent of the new flag does not represent Islam," he said, adding: "The old one had nicer colors."

In Arabic nations, the colors of flags have widely recognized meanings.

Green, white and black denote Islam - harkening back to the battle banners of the medieval Islamic dynasties of the Fatimids, Ummayads and Abbasids. Green is said to have been the prophet Muhammad's favorite color; the Saudi, Libyan, Algerian and Mauritanean flags are completely or largely green.

Islamic crescents in Arab heraldry are usually green or red.

Red, meanwhile, points to Arab nationalism. It was the color of the Sharif Hussein, who led the Arab revolt against Ottoman Turkish rule in the early 1900s, and he added it to a flag of green, white and black stripes to create a symbol of pan-Arabism.

Hussein's banner was the basis for the Jordanian, Palestinian and Syrian flags - as well as the old Iraqi one.

The only Arab League members to have any blue in their flag are the African nations of Djibouti and Somalia.

Da http://ap.washingtontimes.com/dynami...MPLATE=DEFAULT


The new Iraqi flag is seen after members of the Iraqi Governing Council (IGC) choose a new flag and emblem for Iraq representing the country's ethnic and Islamic nature, in Baghdad, Iraq, Monday, 26 April, 2004. The new flag includes two blue horizontal stripes signifying the two rivers Tigris and Euphrates. A yellow stripe between the two blue ones symbolizes the Kurdish region in northern Iraq. Above the three stripes is a white background with a blue crescent, an Islamic symbol. (AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen)

Certo, non stupisce che un governo che non può fare un cazzo perda il suo tempo a ridisegnare la bandiera, tra l'altro senza motivo e solo per accontentare i curdi...

Cmq, era MOLTO MEGLIO la vecchia...




Hanno fatto la stessa cosa con quella afgana:


old


new

[GioFX]

Da http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3663387.stm




Iraqis unimpressed by flag design

Hundreds of Iraqis have been e-mailing BBC News Online to comment on the new Iraqi flag unveiled yesterday.

[...]

The biggest complaint was that it had been chosen by Iraq's US-appointed council without consulting the people.

"I think the so-called Governing Council has no right whatsoever to change the flag of Iraq," Ala' Al-Tamimi from the southern city of Basra wrote in a typical response.

"They are not a legitimate government and their decision would not be accepted by most Iraqis."

[...]

Abu Ibrahim of Nasriyah says the design by Rifat Chaderchi was probably chosen because he is related to Governing Council member Naseer Chaderchi.

"We had over 30 designs to choose from for our new flag. Surprise, surprise he chose his younger brother's design which a lot of Iraqis say resembles the Israeli flag! Iraq is still a corrupt state."

[...]

"Millions of Iraqi people like me are proud of our flag - red, white and black with three green stars - it represents our pan-Arab identity," Alia Salim from Basra said.

[...]

Many Iraqis echoed Abu Ibrahim saying the new design looked more than anything like the flag of their deadliest enemy - Israel.

UK-resident Hassan al-Zubaydi says this is just another example of how American is trying to isolate Iraq from the rest of the Arab World.

"This new flag adds to the list - we have a new flag which has similar colour markings to that of the Israeli flag? Coincidence? Highly unlikely!"

Tariq Abdel-Fattah, a Bagdadi living in the US, also notices a similarity which he says "makes me shiver since it resembles the death to Arabs".

[eriol]

brutta. meglio quella vecchia.

[jumpermax]

diamine è vero.... non ha un verso.

[Teox82]

Eh già,un bel problema

[LittleLux]

Originariamente inviato da Teox82
Eh già,un bel problema

Potrebbe esserlo, anzi, forse lo sta già diventando, a sentire certe notizie.Non certo per il lato estetico in se, ma piuttosto per cosa dovrebbe rappresentare quel simbolo, e per come dovrebbe rappresentarla.

[shambler1]

Ma perchè coi colori di Israele?

[ALBIZZIE]

The change recalls the U.S. agenda of creating a "New Iraq" that is exceptional in the Arab world.

di conseguenza i colori non c'entrano nulla ne con l'islam ne con l'arabia.

[Nevermind]

Orribile .

Saluti.

[cerbert]

Effettivamente E' proprio brutta...

Anche il riconoscimento ai kurdi... non penso che ai kurdi interessi una bandiera dell'Iraq che li comprenda ma, piuttosto, un Iraq che accetti LA LORO bandiera...

Mah...

[PaTLaBoR]

a me piace di più quella nuova, i colori sono più puliti...

invece per quella afgana, mi piaceva di più quella vecchia

[ALBIZZIE]

ma non penso sia un problema estetico e di ' verso'.

ma quela vecchia da quanto tempo era la bandiera dell'iraq?
da prima di saddam o dalla rivoluzione?