Video of Palestinian flags at Vatican misrepresented as pope's funeral

Christians in the Gaza Strip joined mourners around the world in grieving Pope Francis, who maintained close contact with their small community throughout the war between Israel and Hamas and pushed for a ceasefire. But a video spreading online of people waving some two dozen Palestinian flags in St Peter's Square was not captured during the pontiff's funeral. Reverse images search revealed the footage shows the crowd that gathered at the Vatican for Christmas in 2023. 

"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.

Image
Screenshot from X taken May 1, 2025

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.

AFP could not determine the original source of the video circulating online. But 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).

Image
Screenshot from X taken May 1, 2025, with elements outlined by AFP to highlight individual members of the crowd
Image
Screenshot from X taken May 1, 2025, with elements outlined by AFP to highlight individual members of the crowd

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).

 

The videos show 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.

Image
Screenshot from X taken May 1, 2025, with elements outlined by AFP to highlight Santa Claus hats and a Christmas tree

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.

Image
People wave Palestinian flags as they wait for the Christmas Urbi et Orbi blessing in St Peter's Square at The Vatican on December 25, 2023 (AFP / Tiziana FABI)

Footage of the pontiff's funeral, meanwhile, shows a different crowd and ceremony -- without the same Palestinian flags (archived here).

(VATICAN MEDIA)

AFP has debunked other misinformation surrounding the pope's death here.

Is there content that you would like AFP to fact-check? Get in touch.

Contact us