Wiktionary
n. 1 (context nautical English) A ruse, in the days of sail, in which an attacking ship would fly the colours of its enemy until close enough to open fire. 2 (label en espionage military) A diversionary or propaganda tactic of deceive an adversary into thinking that an operation was carry out by another party.
Wikipedia
The contemporary term false flag describes covert operations that are designed to deceive in such a way that the operations appear as though they are being carried out by entities, groups, or nations other than those who actually planned and executed them.
Historically, the term "false flag" has its origins in naval warfare where the use of a flag other than the belligerent's true battle flag before (but not while) engaging the enemy has long been accepted as a permissible ruse de guerre; by contrast, flying a false flag while engaging the enemy constitutes perfidy.
Operations carried out during peace-time by civilian organizations, as well as covert government agencies, can (by extension) also be called false flag operations if they seek to hide the real organization behind an operation.
False Flag (original title in ) is an Israeli television thriller drama series.
The series is directed by Oded Raskin and stars Ishai Golan, Maggie Azarzar, Angel Bonanni, Ania Bukstein and Orna Salinger. It was created for Keshet International by Maria Feldman and Amit Cohen. It involves five ordinary Israelis who wake up one morning and discover that their names, faces, and personal details have been splashed across the world’s media on suspicion of involvement in a high-profile kidnapping.
The series had its world premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival in February, and won the audience award at France's Series Mania festival in April 2015. In October 2015, during the annual trade show MIPCOM, it was announced that the series was acquired by Fox International and was its first acquisition of a foreign-language series on a global scale. The show will be broadcast in 127 countries.
False Flag was made by Keshet International and originally aired on Israel's Channel 2 on October 29, 2015.
Usage examples of "false flag".
The horizontal stresses in the flanges are greatest at the centre of a span.
The French admiral had planned it perfectly, the lure of his false flag breaking the British and not his own squadron into pieces.
MI6 often obtains and uses genuine documentation from friendly liaison services such as the Danes and Austrians for `false flag operations'.
In his last moments of life, before his brain died from lack of oxygen, David Greengold realized that he'd fallen for the oldest of espionage traps, the False Flag.
Here at last stood the captain who had carried the false flag of surrender, luring Tathagres and eight demon allies into a trap of double intrigue that had foiled the compact's conquest of Cliffhaven.