Palestinian keffiyeh
White keffiyehs had been traditionally worn by Palestinian peasants and bedouins to protect from the sun, when Palestine was part of the Ottoman Empire.
[2] Outside of the Middle East and North Africa, the keffiyeh first gained popularity among pro-Palestinian activists; it is widely considered to be an icon of solidarity with the Palestinians in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict.
[5] The black-and-white fishnet pattern keffiyeh would later become Arafat's symbol and he would rarely be seen without it; only occasionally would he wear a military cap, or, in colder climates, a Russian-style ushanka hat.
[8][9] Early on, he had made it his personal trademark to drape the scarf over his right shoulder only, arranging it in the rough shape of a triangle, to resemble the outlines of the territory claimed by Palestine.
[10] Another Palestinian figure associated with the keffiyeh is Leila Khaled, a member of the armed wing of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.
This was unusual, as the keffiyeh is associated with Arab masculinity, and many believe this to be something of a fashion statement by Khaled, denoting her equality with men in the Palestinian resistance.
In 2021, clashes broke out at Al-Azhar University after Hamas security forces demanded that students and staff members remove their black and white keffiyehs, an action that critics believe was motivated by the keffiyeh′s association with Fatah.
Other popular styles include rectangular-shaped scarves with the basic black-and-white pattern in the body, with the ends knitted in the form of the Palestinian flag.
[17] In 2006, the prime minister of Spain, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero gave a speech in which he criticized Israel harshly, then accepted a keffiyeh from members of the audience and had his photo taken wearing it.
[19] In 2007, the American clothing store chain Urban Outfitters stopped selling keffiyehs after a user on the Jewish blog Jewschool criticized the retailer for labelling the item as an anti-war woven scarf".
