Always Vigilant

The Ministry of Public Security is revising the Firearms Law, intended to compel bearers of a firearms license by virtue of their professional to pass mental competence examinations. Exclusive interview with the person in charge of the Firearm Licensing Departmen

Always Vigilant

The hundreds of thousands of trigger pulls, the recoil, the cracking sound of the gunshots and the searing-hot shells ejected from my rifles over a decade taught me a lot about self-discipline, controlling my concentration and pulse and developing animal instincts along with a delicate touch. One thing became abundantly clear to me – anyone holding a firearm must be super-serious. I used to send those loud wannabes who declared that they wanted their own firearms to the neighborhood video arcade. I believed that if they had a toy gun to match their swagger, my advice may save the Firearm Licensing Department at the Ministry of Public Security the need to refuse yet another firearms license application.

The authority in charge of the issuance of firearms licenses in the State of Israel is the Firearm Licensing Department at the Ministry of Public Security, headed by Mr. Yaakov Amit. We conducted this exclusive interview to Israel
Defense at his home court, his office at the Ministry of Public Security, where he has manned his desk for the past two decades (it should be noted that until 2011, the Department was a part of the Ministry of the Interior, and subsequently became a part of the Ministry of Public Security).

Yaakov Amit began his military career in the IDF elite reconnaissance units Egoz and Shaked. He subsequently served as commander of the Special Weapons and Tactics Course at the IDF Infantry Training School, as operations officer in the Gaza Strip sector and with the Israel Civil Administration, and was honorably discharged at the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel. Since his discharge from IDF, for the past 19 years, he has served as head of the Firearm Licensing Department. “I still have a lot more to accomplish in this capacity,” he says. Surprisingly, he has not owned a personal firearm over the last few years. “I do not want anyone to raise their eyebrows,” he explains.

Amit entered his office at a time when the state of gun control in Israel was truly anarchistic. Back then, in 1996, nation-wide supervision was not effectively controlled. Some organizations were not obliged to properly manage their firearms affairs, except from the moment a firearm was sold. One of Amit’s first moves upon entering his office was to order firearms dealers to report the firearms in their possession, for the benefit of computerized registration. To his delight, they responded understandingly. But let’s leave Amit’s past memories for now, and focus instead on his – and our – present.

Last February, the revision to the Firearms Law came into effect. To clarify, this revision does not pertain to private citizens but only to those who carry firearms by virtue of their professional capacity, as employees of security companies, as well as to bearers of a special license in government ministries and privately-owned enterprises.

Anyone who applied for a firearms license until now was only required to fill out a questionnaire and pass a medical examination. Pursuant to the recent revision, applicants are required to pass a mental competence examination before they reach the practical training stage. The revision originated from the understanding that the examinations conducted thus far did not reliably reflect the health state of the applicant and how dangerous he/she could become if he/she carried a firearm. As stated, from now on applicants for a firearms license will have to pass a mental competence examination by one of the hundred psychologists authorized by the Firearm Licensing Department to conduct such examinations.

Over the course of 2013 there were seven gunfire incidents involving firearms held by security guards, which led to the injury of 13 persons. In three of those incidents, the security guards involved took their own lives. Has the mental competence examination for firearms license applicants been applied pursuant to those incidents?

“There is a connection to those cases. Initially, the intention was to compel anyone holding a firearm to pass a mental competence examination, but it was not a simple undertaking to pass such a regulation. Security companies sometimes hasten to hand out firearms to their employees. A person wishing to engage in security who passed the threshold criteria – age, Israeli citizenship, a certificate of good conduct and a clean bill of health, will be allowed to receive firearms training. The problem is that these companies are mostly run on the basis of business considerations, so there are quite a few places that employ security guards who are not sufficiently competent or even dangerous.”

Is there an intention to reduce the number of firearms in the hands of civilians?

“That is not our policy. There is no intention to reduce, but rather to ‘hone’ the criteria. You will only receive a license if you really need a firearm and are competent to carry one. Just last November we expanded the list of settlements entitled to firearms for the benefit of the security of their inhabitants. Admittedly, one of the first things the new Minister of Public Security will have to do is to review the current criteria and at a later stage – issue a situation appraisal.”

In the State of Israel there are currently about 150,000 privately-owned firearms, about 130,000 firearms owned by organizations and a substantial amount of illegal firearms smuggled into the country, which the Israel Police has a hard time controlling. The percentage of women in those statistics is 5% in the private sector as opposed to five times as much in the organizational sector.

Amit’s declaration that there is no intention to reduce the number of privately-owned firearms notwithstanding, the facts suggest otherwise. The number of privately-owned firearms was reduced by half since the day he entered office.

It should be noted that the process of issuing a firearms license to a private individual consists of nine stages: submission of the application for a new license, review of the applicant’s entitlement (conformance to the relevant criteria), an appointment/personal interview by a licensing officer, submission of a health statement, purchasing of a firearm, range practice, payment of the license fee, submission of the necessary approvals to the Firearm Licensing Office and finally – the issuance of the license. However, beyond this strict procedure and the costs it involves, which amount to thousands of ILS, the story does not end here.

You stated that there is no intention to reduce the number of firearms in the hands of civilians, but the requirements presented by your department are becoming increasingly more stringent…

“Without a doubt, we currently enforce the training requirements very strictly and it is no longer enough to just pay the license fee once every three years. It is totally unacceptable for a person to renew his firearms license without having a live fire practice session at the range or without having his competence examined. Additionally, in the context of the inspections conducted before the firearms license is renewed, we verify that the firearm used is, indeed, the relevant firearm. There were incidents where people reported to the range with firearms that did not belong to them, and in retrospect we found firearms that had been exchanged by mistake between members of the same family or used by persons who were unable to shoot in the first place. Today it is our declared intention to shorten the validity period of the license and increase the number of training sessions.”

This intention will significantly increase the expenses incurred by the firearm owners…

“Not exactly. They will pay a one-time fee for a period of about ten years, and would not be required to renew their licenses every three years, but they will have to receive training, for a charge, every year. In preliminary discussions we held with the range owners, they were willing to offer more moderate prices.”

The only private firearm owners in Israel who are exempt from the payment of a fee and from training are members of the families of fallen soldiers – families who keep the personal firearms of their loved ones as mementos. Despite the fact that the firearms in question are framed and disabled (firing pin removed and parts of the firearm welded together), these owners, too, are obliged to renew their firearms licenses every three years, in the context of the recent easements.

Another population segment Amit is concerned with is made up of firearm owners who have not yet renewed their firearms licenses. “I am referring to some 4,500 individuals whose firearms have not been inspected and constitute potential danger. According to the law, they are required to deposit their firearms with the Police immediately, and anyone failing to do so may be sentenced to six months’ imprisonment. We intend to launch a large-scale enforcement campaign very soon, and once we catch those individuals, it is very doubtful whether we would ever renew their licenses,” says Amit.

Is it difficult to obtain a firearms license in the State of Israel?

“The answer to that question is a complex one. Anyone who needs it and is competent will receive a license. The policy today is a balanced one. According to it, if a greater amount of firearms is required by certain population segments they will receive them within a period of one to two weeks. On the other hand, if we believe that firearms in the hands of the general public could be harmful, we will apply more stringent criteria. For a person who does not conform to the criteria, it will be very difficult or even impossible to obtain a firearms license.”

What about the exceptions?

“Apart from young athletes involved in shooting sports (this writer received a firearms license when she was 15 years old), we try not to grant exceptional licenses, as we are often reprimanded for it and sometimes these cases even end up in court. I fully understand the people who served in the military and feel that they had given their very best and are subsequently denied a firearms license – or so it appears. At the same time, we always try to explain that privately-owned firearms are a different case and never yield in the wars people wage against us.”

Nevertheless, what is the greatest satisfaction of your position?

“The facts indicate that if a firearm is owned by a trustworthy, reliable individual, it will always enhance the sense of security and not be harmful. I went to bed many times thinking that a terrorist may have planned to stage an attack in a crowded area, but at the moment of truth he noticed a person carrying a firearm and ammunition, and was deterred.” 

The author was Israeli champion in Olympic target shooting for 8 years. She won a bronze medal at the 2006 World Championships and holds several Israeli records to this day. 

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