AS GUN LAWS LOOSEN, ISRAELI WOMEN ARE ABLE TO BUY MORE WEAPONS

Sat 22 June 2024:

The number of Israeli women applying for gun permits has soared in particular, with Ministry of National Security data saying there have been 42,000 gun permit applications by women since October 7.

With 18,000 approved, the number of women-held licenses has more than tripled since the war began.

The surge has been enabled by the loosening of gun laws under Israel’s right-wing government and its far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.

More than 15,000 women civilians own a firearm in Israel and the occupied West Bank, with 10,000 enrolled in mandatory training, according to the ministry.

While the immediate trigger for the surge in gun buying was the October 7 attack, Ben-Gvir was already pledging to reform firearms legislation when he became security minister in late 2022.

He promised to raise the number of civilians holding weapons and “increase self-defence capacity”.

Eligibility criteria for gun ownership in Israel now include being a citizen or permanent resident over the age of 18 and having basic command of Hebrew and medical clearance.

The full list of requirements makes it nearly impossible for non-Jews to obtain a permit.

In March, Ben-Gvir, who is himself a settler in the occupied West Bank, hailed civilian weapon ownership passing the 100,000 mark, while showing off his own gun at a rally.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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