Super Bowl Halftime Performer Detained After Displaying Sudanese, Palestinian Flags

A performer involved in Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl halftime show was detained by security for displaying a Sudanese flag and a Palestinian flag together, each bearing the words “Sudan” and “Gaza,” respectively, NBC News reports.

The incident occurred towards the end of the performance, according to the NFL.

The NFL identified the individual as a member of the 400-person field cast, dressed in black like other dancers.

The league later confirmed that the individual will be “banned for life from all NFL stadiums and events.”

A representative for Roc Nation, the production company behind the halftime show, stated, “The act by the individual was neither planned nor part of the production and was never in any rehearsal.”

Requests for comment from New Orleans police, Homeland Security Investigations, and Apple Music, the halftime show sponsor, were directed to the NFL security team or went unanswered.

Photos and videos of the incident indicate it occurred during the final song, “tv off.” The individual was seen holding the flag aloft while standing on the back of a black Grand National car, a central feature of the performance. The performer then jumped off the car and jogged across the field for approximately 20 seconds before being apprehended by security. They were escorted off the field after the lights came back on.

The incident took place following a round of prisoner exchanges between Israel and Hamas, amidst a weeks-long ceasefire that has led to the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners, as well as aid deliveries to Gaza. Simultaneously, a civil war continues in Sudan.