Country profile: Kuwait

Until 1961, Kuwait, then a British protectorate, used a red flag bearing the name of the country in Arabic. The current flag was adopted on 7 September 1961, a few weeks after independence, and officially raised on 24 November 1961.

It consists of three horizontal stripes, green, white and red, and a black trapezium at the hoist.

During the Iraqi occupation from August 1990 to February 1991, the flag became a symbol of resistance; the country's liberation is celebrated every 26 February.

The colours of the Kuwaiti flag are traditionally explained by a line from the 14th-century Arab poet Safi al-Din al-Hilli:

• White: ‘white are our deeds’.
• Black: ‘black are our battles’.
• Green: ‘green are our lands’.
• Red: ‘red are our swords’.

Kuwait celebrates two national holidays in a row: 25 February, the anniversary of the accession of Emir Abdullah al-Salim al-Sabah, and 26 February, Liberation Day.

The trapezium shape of the black section is rare among national flags.

The Kuwaiti flag resembles that of the United Arab Emirates, which uses the same colours but with a vertical red band at the hoist.