December 04, Colombo (LNW): The Ministry of Defence has announced a decision to limit the issuance of firearms to civilians, restricting ownership to a maximum of one firearm per individual. The policy follows ongoing investigations into the use of firearms provided to civilians.
Requests for additional firearms will be subjected to thorough security assessments conducted by intelligence units and agencies. Decisions on issuing more than one firearm will be based on these evaluations.
The Ministry emphasized that if a security assessment determines no significant threat to an individual’s life, previously issued firearms will be confiscated.
Currently, the Ministry is investigating firearms issued to civilians through its premises. Official records indicate that a total of 1,550 firearms have been distributed to civilians to date.
