In 2020 the Egyptian ministry of military production announced the manufacture of the first ‘multi-machine gun’, the announcement came with national pride as the Multi-Machine Gun (or multi-purpose machine gun possibly depending on translation) will be completely manufactured by Egypt. The machine gun, called the Helwan 920, was shown in the previous IDEX Conferences at Dubai IDEX 2017, Egypt EDEX 2018 and Egypt EDEX 2019 as prototypes. The weapon has appeared on Egyptian government arms sites since the early 2010s.
Silah Report Guest Author
Shotguns of the Middle East Gun Markets
When talking about the gun markets of the Middle East, military type weapons usually take center stage, but shotguns are as popular in this part of the world as anywhere else, be they for self-defense or sporting purposes. This article is intended as an overview of the range of shotguns that can be found in the region in order to get a better understanding of this lesser studied side of the weapons markets.
The Persian Saga – Rise of the AK-103 in Iran
For decades, the Kalashnikov self-loading rifle has been a prolific design, put to use by various actors worldwide and revered by many as a symbol of either good or evil. Iran is no exception to its sphere of influence and shows no signs of loosening its reins on the weapon, which since the days of its war against Iraq, it has kept various variant of the rifle in service. In this article, we will document the history and functionality of the most recent variant of the Kalashnikov rifle seen in Iran: the AK-103.
Handmade Turkish FN Model 1910 Found in Drawer
The Black Sea region of Turkey has an important place in history in terms of weapons production. You can come across Black Sea brands such as TİSAŞ and GİRSAN in many places. However, this region stands out not only with its weapon factories, but also with its handmade weapons. In this article we will examine a pistol recently rediscovered in a drawer after many years forgotten.
Guns and Roses – The Bulgarian AK Connection
In the late 1940s and 1950s, the Cold War was well underway. The Western powers had sponsored the creation of the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) and formed NATO. In response, the Soviets initiated several countermoves such as the creation of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) and the formation of the Warsaw Pact which bound the Soviet satellite states of Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, Poland, and Romania into a mutual defense agreement.
The Captured Cannon of Kabul, 1879
In 1869, the Emir of Afghanistan, Sher Ali Khan, began a process to rapidly improve the quality and quantity of artillery pieces in the Afghan Army. Informed by the experiences of the First Anglo-Afghan War (1839 to 1842) and internal territorial wars that he had previously fought, Sher Ali was determined to see his forces equipped with the latest rifled iron breech-loading guns. Whilst he was able to achieve this, his successes would be short-lived. Ultimately, failings in leadership and discipline would prove more important than his modernised guns.
Northern Iraq PKK-Weapon Caches of Operation ‘Claw Tiger’
On 17 June, 2020, the Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) commenced Operation ‘Claw Tiger’ against the PKK in the so-called Haftanin region. Haftanin is an unofficial region North of Zakho, a city in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. This marks the fourth Turkish incursion into Iraq’s Kurdistan Region since May 2019. As
per usual, TAF personnel confiscated and captured numerous weapons from the PKK. This article will
investigate some of the more noteworthy weapons.
Israel’s Attempt at a 9mm Revolver
This article will examine what is known about a prototype revolver developed by pre-state defense organizations and the industrial group Ta’as in collaboration. This project started in the 1940s as an effort to design and produce a sidearm using the ubiquitous 9×19mm Parabellum cartridge. The proliferation of Sten guns throughout the region meant a sidearm of the same caliber would simplify logistics significantly for the Jewish underground. 9mm Parabellum was also readily produced in pre-state Israel (prior to 1948 in a covert operation that included the Ayalon Institute) so it was a logical choice in caliber.
The Demise of Al-Qadisiyah Establishments During the Invasion of Iraq
Roughly six months into Operation Iraqi Freedom, the commander of United States Central Command testified before the U.S. Senate Committee that, “there is more ammunition in Iraq than any place I’ve ever been in my life, and it is all not securable.” So, how can a country with a nearly limitless stockpile of weapons and the indigenous Tabuk production facility also be the birthplace of such arcane rifles? Operation Iraqi Freedom changed the Iraqi black market arms trade forever and, in a matter of two months, turned Tabuk rifles into artifacts only found in history books, obscure sales, and black-market trading.