Persons holding a gun permit can buy semi-automatic shotguns, rapid-fire rifles, single-shot rifles and double-barreled rifles with which they can hunt, but all rifles of calibre greater than 8 millimeters are prohibited in Iceland, although with a special permit to hunt large animals abroad, such as elephants or buffaloes from the African Cape. Lee said America has a “long-term fascination with guns.” He noted that the U.S. is proud of its 2nd Amendment, but gun culture is more complicated than that. 180 of these weapons are legally privately owned in Iceland. In the wake of February`s mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, the “Enough is Enough” movement led to legislation tightening gun restrictions in the state, including raising the legal age to buy a gun to 21. But this has not been repeated in other States or at the national level. A: According to a colleague of mine who is an avid hunter who is knowledgeable about Iceland`s gun laws, all automatic and semi-automatic rifles and most handguns are banned from the public in Iceland. In Iceland, weapons are often used for hunting and sports. But guns are everywhere in Iceland, about one for every three people, and many here are staunch defenders of their right to own a gun. Only special forces, such as the Viking Squad, the Icelandic version of a SWAT team, can carry weapons and even then, they are stored in locked boxes that require permission from management to open them. Most weapons are used here for hunting or competitive shooting. Crimes of any kind are so rare that few, if any, people argue that they must possess a weapon to defend themselves. In an interview with the news channel, an Icelandic gunsmith defended guns as the problem.
RÚV (Iceland). 2021. “Nearly 4,000 handguns in Iceland.” February 24. (N807) Full quote “It`s not about acting too late. The legal framework requires this process and we must respect the law,” he says. “As I have said several times this year, we are rethinking the entire legal framework for obtaining a gun licence. Overall, the law is quite strict and it is not an easy process to get a gun license compared to the countries around us. But we are going through these things and it is on my agenda as a proposal for the autumn to change the legal framework. Due to the sensitive and/or legal purpose of certain content on globalnews.ca, we reserve the right to disable comments from time to time. Icelandic police officers carry no weapons, only special forces, known in Iceland as the Viking Squad.
The Coast Guard is also armed and carries handguns and automatic rifles. A recent NBC News article took a look at the two countries — their mutual fondness for guns, but very different ways of handling guns. Police had seized all the weapons registered in the attacker`s name earlier this summer, and they were preparing to inform him of the decision to revoke his license this week. The next step was to conduct a medical examination to determine if the man was fit for a firearms licence. Birgir Jónasson, the northwestern police chief, said these measures were required by law and there was no legal way to recall a gun license without due process. There is no limit to the number of firearms each person can own, although legislation is still pending, but anyone who owns more than three firearms must have a legal safe. Although it is legal in Iceland to buy and sell firearms online, the process itself goes through the police, who ensure that the buyer has applied for a permit and presented evidence to the seller. A seller faces a revoked license and a fine if he sells weapons outside the right channels. Police are closely monitoring the sale of weapons online. Proponents of gun control in the United States sometimes cite countries like Japan, where strict laws and a pacifist culture mean there are very few guns and, therefore, very few gun deaths. Iceland has a population of about 330,000, 90,000 of whom own firearms.
van Dijk, Jan, John van Kesteren and Paul Smit.2007. » Possession of firearms and handguns in countries and cities (percentages): SVA 1989-2005 and EU ICS 2005. Criminal victimisation in an international perspective: key findings from the ICVS 2004-2005 and the EU ICS. Vienna: United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime / UNODC, 1 January. (Q11804) “There`s nothing wrong with the gun,” said Jóhann Vilhjálmsson, a gunsmith in Reykjavik, echoing a favorite argument of the National Rifle Association. “The gun doesn`t kill anything, you know? It is the person holding the weapon. It is also possible to obtain a special handgun collector`s permit, and sports federations practicing marksmanship can apply for a permit to use .22-gauge indoor handguns, such as those used in the Olympic Games. My colleague said that the vast majority of hunters own fewer than ten guns; Two or three is the average. The possession of firearms is strictly regulated in Iceland. Collectors must hold a firearms licence for five years and maintain proper storage facilities for the firearms before they can apply for a collector`s licence – a necessity for acquiring semi-automatic weapons. Once a permit is obtained, weapons can be fired at approved ranges.
Pálsson is responsible for one of the conferences leading up to the weapons test. Vilhjálmsson, the municipal gunsmith, gives another, as well as the tests at the shooting range. The entire process is managed by the Icelandic Environmental Protection Agency. “The vast majority of people who own guns in the U.S. buy them because they want them for security reasons. It shows that people in general, Republicans and Democrats, have lost confidence in the state, confidence in the ability of the police to protect them. It is now on the table to reconsider the legal framework for gun ownership in Iceland, in particular the procedure by which a person loses his or her gun licence.