This article will focus on the weapons shown in the propaganda of Xhemati Alban in 2020. It is part of a four-part series. The introduction and the first part examining handguns can be found here.
Black Market
The Furniture of the Middle East
Throughout the MENA region, we see the private sale of firearms online but they often get in the way of the more interesting things in the photographs – the furniture! In this article, we will examine some of the vibrant and varied furniture spotted in numerous Middle-Eastern countries, written as a joint project by several Silah Report contributors.
Scarce Spanish STAR Submachine Gun In The Pak-Afghan Region
STAR, short for Star Bonifacio Echeverria, is a well known Spanish company which manufactured firearms for around 116 years, from about 1905 to 1997 when they closed up shop. The various firearm designs and platforms they manufactured, apart from some pistol designs, aren’t too common and don’t typically pop up in more out-of-the-way regions of the world. That being said, a small more unknown gem of theirs happened to end up in an arms dealership located in the infamous town of Darra Adam Khel in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan, of all places.
The Pak-Afghan Side-Folding AK Phenomena
Over the past few decades, a certain style of AK-pattern self-loading rifle or more specifically an AK variant feature has come out on top to be nicknamed the iconic ‘Khyber AK’ style by arms enthusiasts outside the Pak-Afghan region. This was destined to be so, especially after being seen in the hands of the infamous Usama Bin-Ladin, which helped propel this AK style into the limelight. Although it would be incorrect to assume one specific style to be the definitive Khyber modified or built AK type self-loading rifle ‘design’ due to the multitude of styles and variants manufactured in the Khyber region. The AKM or an AK-pattern rifle fitted with the iconic Russian skeleton triangle side-folding buttstock found on the AKS-74 and AKS-74U, has become that iconic piece. Not only that, but it truly is also one of the more popular choices for a folding buttstock within the Pak-Afghan region in general.
V30: Israel’s Premier Attorney in Security Law – Perry Novotny
In Silah Report’s 30th and final podcast episode recorded in 2020, we interviewed an amazing guest from Israel, Perry Novotny. Perry is one of Israel’s premier security law attorneys, a former police instructor and a former member of the Israeli Defence Forces. In this episode, Perry enlightened us about the legal framework for firearms in Israel, gave us a deeper insight on the Israeli culture in relation to firearms in contrast to what is being seen on popular media and the selection of firearms in the security field (as well as his own taste in firearms).
The Khyber Strikes Again: Unusual Modified SKS
A friend of ours in the Pak-Afghan border regions within Pakistan recently shared a couple of photos with us showcasing a somewhat unique firearm. This was a highly modified SKS-pattern 7.62×39mm self-loading rifle, likely of Russian origin, and probably a left in the region after the Soviet-Afghan War. By now we should all be very familiar with the some of the wackier work coming out of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa region and this was an interesting piece to see. It is highly unusual configuration to see an SKS-pattern rifle in and the work done to the weapon makes it quite unique.
Improvised Small Arms of ISIS in the Sinai Campaign
Ever since Libya fell into the civil war of 2011 Egypt has had a massive problem with arms smuggling on its borders with Libya. Thousands upon thousands of firearms, tons of explosives, legacy anti-air MANPADs, as well as advanced weaponry like the Kornet ATGM. Egypt in 2011 was almost in a complete state of chaos due to a revolution that saw its then-president Hosni Mubarak removed from power after ruling the country for thirty years and replaced by the SCAF (Supreme Command of the Armed Forces). In this article we will examine some of the improvised munitions and weapons that have been spotted on the Sinai Peninsula.
Operation Onion Truck and DNS Defense
In 2016, Serdar Özyurt, one of the founders of DNS Defense, stated in an interview that his company was accused of arms smuggling. He suggested that the reason for this was a conspiracy made by FETÖ (Source). However, it was later revealed that the smuggling involving DNS Defense was filled with highly suspicious events. It soon became clear that this company was responsible for various military ammunition that was smuggled to ISIS in Syria.
‘Delta Defence Group’ Part Three: The “Glock”
This is the third part of a series of articles about weapons of the “Delta Defence Group”, of which the first two parts were published in late 2019 and early 2020. The first part about the pistol can be found here, and the second part about the rifle can be found here. In this article we will examining the Delta Defence Group ‘Glock’ pistol.
Podcast V28: Noori, The Iraqi Gun Engraving Artisan
Welcome to the 28th episode of the Silah Report Podcast, we recently had the pleasure of speaking with Noori, an artisan who runs a business of handcrafting decorations on firearms in Iraq. We have covered Noori’s interesting work in past articles here at Silah Report. To say that the quality of his artwork is incredibly professional and its quality is extremely beautiful would be an understatement. In our interview with him, we enquired in-depth abut Iraqi gun culture, his background, how he entered the field, his business in a war-torn country, the challenges he faced and what does think the future holds for him.