Why are there numbers on this Egyptian flag?

September 16, 2013 8:16 PM

I saw a poster showing a photo of a protest in Egypt. This image of an Egyptian flag was featured prominently. Why does it have numbers (0128648788) under the central bird motif? Is it a date? A phone number? The image is probably from an Al Jazeera website. The bird doesn't look quite like the official one, either. Is this the flag of some group other than the Egyptian state/
posted by Jasper Fnorde to Law & Government (2 answers total)

My first thought was that it's a phone number -- that looks like the format for phone numbers in that part of the world. Googling the number brings up this YouTube video of a protest, so I'm going to guess that it's an altered flag of a protest organization (the usual three-part shield replaced by a more complex logo).
posted by Etrigan at 8:39 PM on September 16, 2013

Best answer: I think it has something to do with the protests. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bPyxMJd1wc shows something called

ابراهيم مشهور فى التحرير 0128648788

which google translates as

Ibrahim famous in liberation 0128648788

and it's clearly a public speaker in front of posters.

Samira Ibrahim
posted by blob at 8:43 PM on September 16, 2013