“It seems to be a combination of market demand and the ability to manufacture,” he said. The official said that they did not appear to have ties to terrorist groups and were likely motivated by money. Two Palestinians that the IDF identified as the leading owners of the factories were arrested in the raids. Security forces also confiscated gun parts - including grips, barrels, and stocks - that could have been used to manufacture more weapons and ammunition. The recovered weapons include handguns, shotguns, and Carlo-style submachine guns, which are based on the design of Carl Gustav submachine guns. Though the machinery, including drill presses and metal lathes, is common to most machines shops, the equipment seized appeared to “specifically designed for the manufacturing of weapons,” the IDF official said. The raids targeting workshops in the Hebron and Bethlehem areas yielded about 50 weapons and some 22 pieces of gunsmithing machinery.
An IDF official told The Times of Israel that the operation, the largest of its sort this year thus far, was part of an ongoing effort to reduce the number of illegal arms circulating in the West Bank. Israeli security forces raided seven Palestinian-run West Bank weapons workshops early Tuesday morning, confiscating dozens of illegal guns.
