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| '''Small arms''' is a term used by military armed forces of the world to denote infantry weapons an individual soldier may carry. The description is usually limited to ]s, ]s, ]s, ]s, ], ]s, ]s, ]s, and ]s. Also, ] and certain hand-held ]s may be considered small arms, depending on the armed force.<ref></ref> | |||
| Small arms do not include ]s or ]s such as ]s (typically .50 caliber or 12.7 mm) or ].<ref>Marchant-Smith & Haslam, p.169.</ref> In the United States any modern firearm (post-1898) that utilizes a projectile (bullet) greater than 1/2 inch in diameter is legally defined as a "destructive device", while any firearm having a ] diameter of .50 caliber or less is normally considered a "small arm".<ref></ref> The so-called "1/2 inch rule" does not apply to shotguns, sporting cartridge big-bore rifles (such as rifles chambered in ]), ] ] weapons, whether original antiques (pre-1898), or modern replicas, many of which have bore diameters larger than .50 caliber.<ref></ref> | |||
| There is, however, a term which encompasses both, (Small Arms and Light Weapons) ], that is used by some organizations working to limit arms proliferation.<ref></ref> For example, much of the ] action to tackle illegal arms proliferation is raised in the ].<ref></ref> | |||
| ==Global distribution of small arms== | |||
| It is estimated that there are in total 875 million small arms distributed amongst civilians, law enforcement agencies and armed forces, globally.{{efn|This figure excludes older, pre-automatic small arms from military and law enforcement stockpiles or 'craft-produced' civilian firearms.{{sfn|Karp|2007|p=39}}}}{{sfn|Karp|2007|p=39}} 650 million of these firearms, or 75 per cent, are held by civilians worldwide.{{sfn|Karp|2007|p=39|ps=}} US civilians alone account for 270 million of this total.{{sfn|Karp|2007|p=39|ps=}} A further 200 million are controlled by state military forces.{{sfn|Karp|2010|p=102|ps=}} Law enforcement agencies have some 26 million small arms.{{sfn|Karp|2010|p=102|ps=}} Non-state armed groups{{efn|Composed of 'insurgents and militias, including dormant and state-related groups'.{{sfn|Karp|2010|p=101|ps=}}}} have about 1.4 million firearms.{{efn|However, as of 2009, active non-state armed groups, numbering about 285,000 combatants, control only about 350,000 small arms.{{sfn|Karp|2010|p=121|ps=}}}}{{sfn|Karp|2010|p=102|ps=}} Finally, gang members hold between 2 and 10 million small arms.{{sfn|Karp|2010|p=102|ps=}} Together, the small arms arsenals of non-state armed groups and gangs account for, at most, 1.4 per cent of the global total.{{sfn|Karp|2010|p=101|ps=}} | |||
| ==References== | |||
| <references/> | |||
| ==Other reading== | |||
| * Dikshif, P. Proliferation of Small Arms and Minor Weapons, ''Strategic Analysis'', Vol. 17(2) May 1994. | |||
| * Gould, C. and Lamb, G., ''Hide & Seek: Taking Account of Small Arms in Southern Africa'', Institute for Security Studies, Pretoria, 2004. | |||
| * Marchant-Smith, C.J., & Haslam, P.R., ''Small Arms & Cannons'', Brassey's Battlefield Weapons Systems & Technology, Volume V, Brassey's Publishers, London, 1982. | |||
| ==See also== | |||
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| ==External links== | |||
| * | |||
| * | |||
| {{Authority control}} | |||
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