Middle East Monitor / April 12, 2022
Israel is seeking to increase the number of Israelis who carry arms in the streets across the country, Arab48 reported yesterday.
Reporting Israeli officials, the Arabic news website said that the number of Israelis applying for arms licenses has risen sharply.
According to the Israeli Public Broadcaster, Kan, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett had ordered Internal Security Minister Omer Bar-Lev to study the possibility of increasing the number of Israelis who are licensed to carry arms in Israel.
Bennett proposed police ease the conditions related to granting licenses to carry weapons by the public.
The Times of Israel reported a senior Israeli security official saying the number of applications for arms licenses recorded “unprecedented increase.”
Statistics reported by Israeli media showed that 149,000 Israelis have licenses to hold weapons, noting that 6,652 applications for arms licenses have been filed since 20 March 2022.
On 30 March, Bennett announced that any soldier with elementary combat training will take their weapons home with them on weekends.
“What can Israel’s citizens expect? Be alert. Whoever has a weapons license, this is the time to carry it,” Bennett said.
