Video of Palestinian flags at Vatican misrepresented as pope's funeral
- Published on May 1, 2025 at 22:43
- Updated on May 5, 2025 at 19:53
- 5 min read
- By Bill MCCARTHY, AFP USA, AFP Brazil
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"Palestinian flags are being waved at Pope Francis' funeral," says a post on X shared April 26, 2025, the day of the pope's burial.
Similar posts ricocheted across X and other platforms such as Facebook and Instagram, amplified by prominent accounts that have repeatedly spread disinformation and also by news organizations, including Turkey's state-run Anadolu Agency.
The video also circulated in Portuguese and Spanish, among other languages.
While some users celebrated the apparent show of solidarity for Gaza -- where more than 52,000 people have died and almost the entire population has been displaced since the outbreak of the war between Israel and Hamas after the militant group's October 7, 2023 attack -- others shared the clip in condemnation.
"It's hard not to feel a deep sense of disgust watching Palestinian flags waved at Pope Francis' funeral -- a moment meant for mourning twisted into a political spectacle," one X user wrote.
The Vatican said 400,000 people packed St Peter's Square and lined the streets of Rome April 26, 2025 to honor the first Latin American leader of the Catholic Church, who spent a decade in the role before dying April 21 at the age of 88.
Pope Francis had repeatedly called for a ceasefire in Gaza, a stance that strained relations with Israel but earned the pontiff tributes from Middle Eastern leaders and Arab movements following his death. He also regularly phoned a small Christian congregation in the besieged territory.
The footage of Palestinian flags, however, is unrelated to his funeral.
Reverse image searches surfaced nearly identical footage, which shows the same crowd from a similar vantage point and was taken December 25, 2023 (archived here and here).
The X user who recorded the near-matching footage also uploaded a second shot of himself in front of the waving Palestinian flags (archived here).
And forgive my forlorn expression. I was happier than I look. Solidarity to Palestine. pic.twitter.com/S4kk3DOF5M
— Tory Fibs (@ToryFibs) December 25, 2023
Reached via Facebook direct message, the user, who goes by "Tory Fibs," said the clip being misrepresented online was also his and shared the original recording with AFP.
"I am not sure who claimed it was Francis's funeral. That is very sad to hear," he said in a May 3, 2025 message.
The user also provided AFP with several other shots he captured of the Palestinian flags waving at the ceremony. He confirmed he filmed each clip December 25, 2023.
The footage being mischaracterized online shows some people wearing red Santa Claus hats in celebration of the holiday, and television screens broadcasting the day's events for the crowd at one point flash to show a Christmas tree in the center of the square.
The Palestinian flags, Christmas tree and other details also appear in the official Vatican News footage of the pope's blessing that day (archived here).
AFP journalists who covered the pope's Christmas remarks captured videos and photos of attendees carrying the banners, as well.
Footage of the pontiff's funeral, meanwhile, shows a different crowd and ceremony -- without the same Palestinian flags (archived here).
AFP has debunked other misinformation surrounding the pope's death here.
This article was updated to include comment from the "Tory Fibs" social media account.May 5, 2025 This article was updated to include comment from the "Tory Fibs" social media account.
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