Though it might seem like a simple case of divided loyalties — two sides, two flags — the reality is more nuanced.

This chimes with more recent history, too: there was a lion and sun figure at the centre of the flag of the Imperial State of Iran, which was overthrown and replaced by the Islamic Republic of ...

Second, 'Operation Rising Lion' could refer to the pre-1979 Iranian national flag, a lion before a rising sun. Third, it could also have a biblical significance.