Colombian officials said on Monday that the country had produced its first combat rifle, a cheaper, lighter weapon aimed at replacing the arms that were once supplied by its former military ally, Israel.
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Leftist President Gustavo Petro broke ties with Israel last year to protest Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ongoing military offensive in the Gaza Strip.
State-owned weapons manufacturer Indumil produced the arms – the first combat rifle manufactured in Colombia – to replace the Galil, a rifle that had been assembled in Colombia using Israeli components since the 1990s.
The goal was to manufacture 400,000 lighter and cheaper rifles in five years and “gradually replace current weapons in the armed forces,” Indumil manager and retired colonel Javier Carmago said.
Experts have voiced doubt that the Latin American country can get up to production capacity without paying a steep price. The new weapons, made of steel and polymer, are 15 to 25 per cent lighter.
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