Did Osama Bin Laden Keep An Ak 47
After besieged Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka strode from his helicopter gripping an assault rifle on August 23, some watching may have felt a flash of deja vu. It was the aforementioned distinctive model of gun Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden was frequently photographed with and the favored weapon of Islamic State (IS) leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
The weapon Lukashenka brandished was a Soviet-fabricated AKS-74U, a lighter, stubbier variant of the AK-74 assault rifle in use by military forces around the world. The specialized AKS-74U was outset fabricated in 1979 and is less powerful and less accurate than the AK-74, due to its short butt.
The "S" and "U" in the proper name of the AKS-74U -- standing for "skladnoi" (folding) and "ukorochenny" (shortened) in Russian -- hint at the prime design motivation. The AKS-74U is around half the length of the AK-74 and was made equally a personal self-defense force weapon, especially for armored-vehicle crews who needed a gun with more penetration power than a pistol and something small enough to be maneuvered within the cramped quarters of a tank or armored personnel carrier.
The entreatment of the AKS-74U for bin Laden is believed to be largely in the symbolic value of the weapon. During the jihadist insurgency against the 1979-89 Soviet occupation of Transitional islamic state of afghanistan, the super-modern gun was initially impossible to buy on the blackness market, therefore its ownership past jihadis was seen equally a kind of "scalp" indicating victory over a Soviet soldier. A practical advantage for fugitive terrorist leaders such as bin Laden and Baghdadi is that the gun is relatively easy to muffle when compared to other, well-nigh meter-long, Soviet assault-burglarize designs.
Merely with ample space, an obvious eagerness to bear witness off his weapon, and an entire modern armory at his disposal, why did Lukashenka pick up a decades-old weapon known for express range and accuracy? The respond may exist found in Lukashenka's military history. In the early 1980s Lukashenka served as the deputy commander of a Soviet motorized infantry visitor and was probably issued an AKS-74U. Information technology's possible the Belarusian president'south weapon of choice is a personal keepsake from the Soviet Union.
Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/30801778.html
Posted by: millerandised1956.blogspot.com
0 Response to "Did Osama Bin Laden Keep An Ak 47"
Post a Comment