American special forces recently received a number of dual-caliber Micro-Tavor (MTAR) assault rifles for testing ahead of a decision of whether to purchase the new weapon, developed and manufactured by Israel Weapon Industries, The Jerusalem Post has learned.
The MTAR is the micro-version of the Tavor assault rifle, jointly developed by the IDF and IMI as a replacement for the US-made M-16. US special forces who are testing the MTAR include the Green Berets, the Navy Seals and other elite units.
The Tavor utilizes a "bullpup" design that shortens the overall length but not at the expense of the barrel, which is 33 centimeters long. This configuration enables it to be used in urban warfare, but also to have a range of more than 500 meters, due to the relatively long barrel.
The MTAR has dual-caliber capability, meaning it can operate as an assault rifle, like an M-16, and with the use of a compact conversion kit turn into a submachine gun, like the Uzi. This makes it ideal for special forces that use different weapons.
The Tavor comes in different variations. The CTAR commando version is used by the IDF, which purchased 15,000 units in 2002. The weapon has a sniper and grenade-launcher variant. It is being used in India, Portugal, Georgia, Colombia and Thailand.
