566 Israeli gun license holders pose risk, authorities fail to act

The data, collected by the “Gun Free Kitchen Tables," also found that 677 weapons were owned by Israelis without a license.

 A gun with bullets on table (photo credit: Wikimedia Commons)
A gun with bullets on table
(photo credit: Wikimedia Commons)

566 gun license carriers in Israel have been marked by police and the Health Ministry as a risk to themselves and others, KAN news reported on Tuesday.

The data, collected by the “Gun Free Kitchen Tables” initiative in July, also found that 677 weapons were owned by Israelis without a license.

In 2022, 32 cases of negligence, suicide by gunfire, and illegal gunfire using a firearm received from a security company or body were recorded, although the number of suicides using such a firearm fell from 12 in 2021 to four in 2022.

About 150,000 Israelis are private firearm owners who are not supervised by the firearms department, according to KAN. The number of private gun owners rose by 3,000 from 2021 to 2022.

The data also shows that the number of women killed in shooting incidents doubled from 2019-2022.

 Israelis practice shooting handguns at a local shooting range in the northern town of Katsrin, Golan Heights, on April 3, 2022, following the recent wave of terror attacks in Israel.  (credit: MICHAEL GILADI/FLASH90)
Israelis practice shooting handguns at a local shooting range in the northern town of Katsrin, Golan Heights, on April 3, 2022, following the recent wave of terror attacks in Israel. (credit: MICHAEL GILADI/FLASH90)

The National Security Ministry claimed that the Welfare Ministry has not been transferring details about individuals who pose a risk to themselves and others to the body responsible for issuing licenses.

Ben-Gvir promoting easing of gun permit restrictions

The report by KAN comes as National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir promoted a number of policies to ease gun permit restrictions, including making it easier for medic volunteers, current and former non-infantry combat soldiers, Hesder program participants, firefighters, Shin Bet officers, and Mossad agents to get a license.