The Pan-Arab colours of black, green, white and red were adopted by the nationalist movements of many Arab nations in the early 20th century as the Iraqis fought to free themselves from the control of the Turkish Ottoman Empire. The common colours fostered the idea of a federation between them, and traditionally they are said to represent the qualities of adherents of Islam: courage (red), generosity (white), the triumphs of Islam (black) and the religion itself (green). The present pattern of Iraq’s flag dates from 1963, when the royal regime established after the First World War was overthrown. It was based on the Egyptian flag of that period, with the same patterning of bands. The Islamic slogan that translates to ‘God is Great’ was adopted in 1991 during the Gulf War.