Light Weapons

Podcast V25: Ali – A Pakistani Firearms Collector

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In this episode, we interview a small arms collector in Pakistan, Mr Ali. Ali has vast experience in the small arms market of Pakistan and was willing to share his knowledge on how it operates, the availability of certain weaponry and the price ranges, as well as the legal regulations and laws that are getting stricter in Pakistan.

He also runs an Instagram page, guns_pakistan, which shows his collection of armament and that of dealers he knows. Do check it out, you will not regret it.

The public SoundCloud version below includes the first thirty minutes of the podcast, our supporters on Patreon can access the entire interview, which is over an hour long.  So if you haven’t already please support us in our mission to bring you the best examination of MENA small arms culture we can!

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Examining IS ‘Wilayat Iraq’ video “Strike [Their] Necks” Pt.2

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The so-called Islamic State, and their previous organizations Jama’at al-Tawhid wal-Jihad, Al-Qaeda in Iraq, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Islamic State of Iraq and Sham (Syria), have sustained an insurgency in Iraq for over 16 years. After the collapse of most of its territorial control in 2017, (besides some hideouts in Anbar province) they are again focused on fighting an insurgency campaign. They have been depleted over the years by the efforts of the Iraqi security forces and the International coalition, so much so that in 2019, ISIS conducted only small raids, small scale attacks, assassinations/executions and abductions and IED attacks. This was a far cry from their capabilities circa 2013-16. However, in recent months their attacks in Iraq have increased, especially in the north of the country. Now, IS have released a long propaganda film, in this two-part article, we will examine the film and see what we can learn about their current capabilities and weapons. You can find the first part of this article examining the small arms seen in the video here.

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Podcast V24: The State of the Turkish Firearms Industry

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In the 24th episode of the Silah Report Podcast, we interviewed Mustafa from Turkey, a professional in the Turkish firearm industry, and discussed in-depth the manufacturing of small arms in Turkey, covering a range of weaponry such as handguns, rifles, and shotguns. 

The public SoundCloud version below includes the first forty-six minutes of the podcast, our supporters on Patreon can access the entire interview, which is over an hour long.  So if you haven’t already please support us in our mission to bring you the best examination of MENA small arms culture we can!

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V22: Hydro-Dipping Small Arms in Idlib, One Craftsman’s Experience

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Welcome to the 22nd episode of the Silah Report Podcast, we recently had the pleasure of speaking with a gunsmith currently living in Idlib who has a long history fighting the SAA, not as an armed militant but as a gunsmith. Before the rebel pocket in Damascus fell to the SAA, he worked on manufacturing ammunition, weaponry, and even mortars for the resistance. He also worked on hydro-dipping rebel firearms. Currently, he resides in Idlib and had a short-lived business project hydro-dipping firearms. He agreed to be interviewed and to inform us about his journey specifically in that field, given that there are hundreds of photos of Syrian rebels with painted firearms floating throughout the internet and it is quite common now to see hydro dipped AK-pattern rifles. We at Silah Report wanted to know more about the industry and the people involved in it.

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V21: Marwan the Iraqi Gunsmith

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In the 21st episode of the Silah Report Podcast, an Iraqi gunsmith talks to us at length about his experiences in aesthetically converting a functional 7.62×39mm RPD Light Machine Gun into what could easily be mistaken for an FN Herstal Minimi, or the US-designated M249 Squad Automatic Weapon, 5.56×45mm light machine gun. He takes us on this journey of tinkering and acquiring spare parts, sometimes even carving items like the buttstock out of wood to make it appear to be a plastic one from afar.

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V20: Post Shot Show 2020 Episode

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In this episode, Miles, Matthew Moss (historian, author and Silah Report’s Editor) and Nate (one of our great patrons) discussed a variety of interesting firearms and equipment they noticed in SHOT Show 2020.

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V19: A Volunteer from the West in the YPG Part 1

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In this amazing 19th episode of the Silah Report Podcast, we were joined by our guest Rizgar, a European who volunteered with the Kurdish YPG in 2016. He gave us some insight on his journey from being your everyday civilian in Europe to a fighter battling beside the Kurds on the frontlines against ISIS militants. He shares with us some fantastic pictures he took over there and his experience with fellow Kurdish comrades and Western volunteers.

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V17: Smalls Arms in Kurdistan Region and the Local Laws

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In the 17th episode of our podcast, we had a new guest from the Kurdistan region who was well versed in the small arms market in the region. The host for the episode was Adham and we had Miles, Daniel, Khyber Abdullah, Mick, our patron Nate and last but not least, our guest from Kurdistan, Rasty.

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A Mysterious Romanian Side-Folding AK – A Darra Special or Something Closer to Home?

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What we have here is a Romanian PM md. 63/65 AKM-pattern self-loading rifle, chambered in 7.62×39mm, and dated to 1992. It looks to be in very good order, basically unused. This particular rifle is located in the United Kingdom, part of an anonymous collection and was deactivated some time between 1992 and 1994. This date range has been confirmed as the deactivation has been done to a UK specification that was phased out in mid-94 and was supplied with a certificate of deactivation. The most noteworthy thing about this rifle, which is a relatively common AK-variant to say the least, is the crude skeleton side-folding stock and mechanism that has been installed on it.

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The 8mm Mauser AK of the Pak-Afghan Region

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The infamous 7.92 × 57 mm Mauser AK-type self-loading rifle from the Pak-Afghan region, known locally as the ‘8mm AK’ and G3 in Pakistan. A handful of images have been floating around for a number of years. I have been lucky enough to inspect a few examples on both the manufacturing side and in private hands over the past few years.

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