Flag of Afghanistan

The national flag of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan was adopted on 15 August 2021, with the Taliban's victory in the 2001–2021 war. It features a white field with a black Shahada inscribed. Since the 20th century, Afghanistan has changed its national flag several times. During this period, the national flag had mostly black, red, and green colours.

In contrast, the tricolour flag of the internationally recognized Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, still in use internationally, consists of three vertical stripes in black, red and green, with the national emblem at the centre in white. This emblem is encircled by sheaves of wheat and encompasses several elements: a Shahada, a Takbir, rays of the sun, a mosque with a mihrab and minbar, two miniature Afghan flags, the year 1298 in the Solar Hijri calendar (corresponding to 1919 in the Gregorian calendar), and the name of the nation. A version of this tricolour flag, introduced by King Amanullah Khan in July 1928, similarly featured three vertical stripes and an emblem within wheat sheaves.

Symbolism of the flag of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan

The current flag of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is a plain white flag with the black words of the shahada in the centre. The white stands for "the (Islamic Movement of Taliban's) purity of faith and government"; the flag incorporated the shahada, the Islamic declaration of faith, after 1997.