The appearance of drawings of the Kurdish flag in the destroyed homes of Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, following the Israeli army's withdrawal, has sparked considerable debate across social media platforms. Palestinian journalist Mohammed Salama documented on his Instagram account videos showing the extent of the destruction left by the occupying army in Khan Younis.
One clip, taken during a tour inside one of the ruined houses, featured the Kurdish flag on one wall, along with the phrase "Free Kurdistan," while another wall bore the phrase "vamos avrina," which means "let's go to Afrin."
Bloggers reacted on social media to the images of the flag, with one user, Tawfiq, commenting on his account on X: "Let's go to Afrin," referring to the well-known city in northern Syria, part of Aleppo province with a predominantly Kurdish population. Another user, Sedqi Zilan, noted that just as there are sympathizers for the Palestinian cause, there are also sympathizers for the Kurdish cause everywhere, suggesting this might be a trap to sow discord between Kurds and others, citing instances where other national flags have been used to incite division among peoples.
In response to claims that this evidence indicates the presence of Kurdish fighters or members of the PKK in Gaza, one blogger stated: "Rejected, a low-level counterfeit. The PKK will not use the Kurdish flag but their party's flag, which refers to Afrin or Efrin. No Kurd can refer to it as Afrin; the PKK is not in Gaza."
Another blogger, Rania, remarked: "Kurds are fighting alongside the Israeli army and drawing the Kurdish flag in the homes of Gaza residents. So why are you upset when Iran strikes Mossad in Erbil?"
