What Iran's two different flags say about its divided opposition

Australia Broadcast Center

6 hours ago

As people take to the streets amid the crisis in Iran, more than one version of the country's flag can be seen being waved.
Both the official flag and another flag, the Lion and Sun, are politically charged, with deep ties to Iran's history and the ongoing struggles of its people.
The official flag is associated with the current regime in power, while the lion and sun design is the pre-revolutionary flag and is used by some opposition groups.
At first glance, it might seem like a simple case of divided loyalties — two sides, two flags — but the reality is more nuanced.
The official flag represents the Islamic Republic of Iran, established after the 1979 revolution led by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, which overthrew the monarchy of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi (also known as "the Shah").
Dr Dara Conduit, a political science lecturer at the University of Melbourne, explains that "the flag of Iran is really, really political, and so… if you were to raise the current flag of Iran, you would possibly be associated with the regime, or it may be interpreted that you're a supporter of the Iranian regime".
Not necessarily.
Martin Kear, a lecturer in government and international relations at the University of Sydney, points out that in some contexts, the flag may be waved by individuals protesting Israel and the United States bombing Iran rather than an overt support for the regime.
Context is key.
For example, Dr Conduit and Professor Kear agree that in the below image taken in Lebanon, the flag likely signals support for the regime.
This is because it appears alongside flags that support terrorist organisation Hezbollah, which receives backing from the Iranian regime.
Though these protests are happening at the same time and use the same symbols, they can express different political messages.
Before the 1979 revolution, Iran's flag featured the lion and sun emblem, which symbolised the Pahlavi monarchy.
Though banned by the Islamic Republic, the flag is still displayed by some Iranians both inside the country and in the diaspora.
According to Professor Kear, displaying the lion and sun flag inside Iran is often "an act of resistance and defiance of the regime", and is not necessarily a call to restore the monarchy.
Dr Conduit cautions, however, that the lion and sun flag does not represent all opposition groups, as it is sometimes associated with controversial political agendas.
The lion and sun flag is closely tied to opposition factions linked to Reza Pahlavi (the Shah's son) and Maryam Rajavi, both polarising figures in Iranian politics.
"[Pahlavi and Rajavi] are extremely controversial figures, and certainly do not represent a democratic future for Iran," said Dr Conduit.
As a result, flying this flag can signal a specific political stance, which not everyone opposing the regime would support.
The Iranian opposition is very divided and that can be seen through the politics of its flag.
"The politics of the flag in Iran is symptomatic of the broader politics of the opposition movement, in that there is no one flag that the opposition is united behind," said Dr Conduit.
Previously, protesters have rallied behind slogans like "Women, Life, Freedom" or images of Mahsa Amini, the young woman whose death sparked the 2022 protests.
But no single banner has emerged as a symbol for the entire opposition.
While opposition to the Iranian regime is widespread, it's not always straightforward.
Many critics of the regime also oppose foreign intervention from the United States and Israel.
"There's a lot of nuance at the moment in the opposition community … you can be anti-regime, and you can want the fall of the regime, but it doesn't mean that you want Israel to decapitate the regime, and possibly lead to a civil war," Dr Conduit says.
While the Iranian regime has many domestic critics, the idea of foreign intervention complicates the situation for some.