No, this is not the King of Denmark waving the Palestinian flag

By: Rajeswari Parasa
May 16 2024

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A post saying King of Denmark waving a Palestinian flag in support of Palestine (Source: Facebook/Modified by Logically Facts)

What is the claim?

A video of a man in a white t-shirt waving a Palestinian flag from a balcony has been circulated on social media with the claim that it depicts King Frederik André Henrik Christian of Denmark expressing support for Palestine. This claim has also been shared on other social media platforms, including X (formerly Twitter), with archives of similar posts available here and here.

Screenshot of the claims circulating online. (Source: X/Modified by Logically Facts)

However, this claim is incorrect; the individual in the video is not the King of Denmark.

Here are the facts

A reverse image search of a keyframe from the viral video led us to a series of visuals shared by a user on X. These visuals included a video (archive here) strikingly similar to the viral one. The user, 'elizabeth_w96', posted this video on May 10, 2024, captioned, "From today's demonstration in Malmö against Israel's participation in Eurovision. At least 10,000 and possibly up to 15,000 people marching against genocide!"

In the third video shared by the user, we can see the same man in the white t-shirt and a child standing next to him on the balcony, with a Palestine flag beside them.

Screenshot of the post shared by an X user from a protest in Malmo (Source: X)

Further examination of the user's X timeline revealed another post (archived here) uploaded on May 12, where the user separately shared the video, clarifying that the man in the video is not the monarch of Denmark.

Screenshot of the post shared by X user Lizzie (Source: X/@elizabeth_w96)

Upon closer inspection of the man in the video, we could see a close shot of him waving the flag at the 22-second mark. Although we could not definitively identify the man in the video, he does not resemble King Frederik André Henrik Christian of Denmark.

The man in the video has a round face, while the Danish King has an oval face and appears much older than the individual in the video. Recent photos, as seen in an AP News report, show the Danish King with a beard, which the man in the video lacks.

A comparison of the person seen in the viral video with the King of Denmark (Source: X/kongehuset.dk)

According to a BBC report dated May 9, 2024, thousands of pro-Palestinian demonstrators marched in the Swedish city of Malmo to protest Israel's participation in the Eurovision Song Contest. Israeli entrant Eden Golan, who performed on May 9, was a semi-finalist in this event. Eurovision, an annual music contest held by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), took place in Malmo on May 7, 9, and 11 this year.

We scrutinized the viral video to ascertain whether the building in the background was the Danish King's palace. Around the 27-second mark, we see a white building with the text "Malmo Hogre Laroverk for flickor," which translates to "Malmo High School for Girls." We geolocated this building on Google Maps and found a brown building where the man waving the Palestinian flag could be seen.

A comparison of the white building seen in the viral video and the building geolocated on Google Maps. (Source: X/Google Maps/Screenshot)

It's worth noting that King Frederik André Henrik Christian of Denmark visited Sweden recently, along with Queen Mary, on May 6 and 7, 2024. However, according to his official itinerary, which is available on the website of the Government Offices of Sweden, he only visited Stockholm and was not in Malmo.

Furthermore, the protests over Eurovision began on May 9, after the Danish King's visit. As reported by the Washington Post, thousands of protesters waved Palestinian flags on May 9 to demand a ceasefire in Gaza and protest against Israel's entry into Eurovision.

The verdict

The man seen in the viral video waving the Palestinian flag is not the King of Denmark, Frederik André Henrik Christian. Despite the Danish King's recent visit to Sweden, he was not in the country when the protests began. Therefore, we have marked this claim as false.