Biden Administration Closing 'Gun Show Loophole'

Customers shop for handguns at the Des Moines Fairgrounds Gun Show at the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines, Iowa, US March 11, 2023. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
Customers shop for handguns at the Des Moines Fairgrounds Gun Show at the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines, Iowa, US March 11, 2023. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
TT

Biden Administration Closing 'Gun Show Loophole'

Customers shop for handguns at the Des Moines Fairgrounds Gun Show at the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines, Iowa, US March 11, 2023. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
Customers shop for handguns at the Des Moines Fairgrounds Gun Show at the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines, Iowa, US March 11, 2023. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights

The White House announced a crackdown on firearms sales at gun shows and over the internet that evade US federal background checks.

Vice President Kamala Harris, who heads the White House Office on Gun Violence Prevention, told reporters the move addresses the so-called "gun show loophole."

"Currently, gun stores are required by law to conduct a background check for every gun sale," Harris said.

"But for decades, many dealers who sell weapons someplace other than the traditional gun store... have gotten away without conducting background checks," she said.

"All gun dealers now must conduct background checks, no matter where or how they sell their merchandise."

Gun violence is common in the United States, a country where there are more firearms than people. Attempts to clamp down on gun rights are always met with stiff political resistance.

Harris said thousands of unlicensed dealers sell tens of thousands of guns a year without conducting background checks.

Among those who have been able to purchase firearms through the "gun show loophole" are domestic abusers and violent felons, she said.

"Under this regulation, it will not matter if guns are sold on the internet, at a gun show, or at a brick-and-mortar store," Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement.

"If you sell guns predominantly to earn a profit, you must be licensed, and you must conduct background checks," Garland said.

A senior White House official said the Biden administration expects the move will be challenged in court by gun rights groups.

"All of the major actions that the president has taken to reduce gun violence have been challenged," the official said. "And in court after court, the actions are frequently being upheld.

"We have confidence that this is legal."



Israel Says No Foreign Courts Have Warrants Issued against Reservists

 Israeli military vehicles operate on a base near the border to Gaza, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, as seen from southern Israel, January 7, 2025. (Reuters)
Israeli military vehicles operate on a base near the border to Gaza, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, as seen from southern Israel, January 7, 2025. (Reuters)
TT

Israel Says No Foreign Courts Have Warrants Issued against Reservists

 Israeli military vehicles operate on a base near the border to Gaza, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, as seen from southern Israel, January 7, 2025. (Reuters)
Israeli military vehicles operate on a base near the border to Gaza, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, as seen from southern Israel, January 7, 2025. (Reuters)

Israel said on Tuesday pressure groups were pushing foreign courts to take action against Israelis over alleged war crimes in Gaza but described the actions as "propaganda activity" and said no warrants had been issued.

The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, as well as a Hamas leader, Ibrahim Al-Masri, over alleged war crimes in Gaza.

The warrants sparked outrage in Israel but also drew fears that similar warrants could be issued against Israelis who served in the military in Gaza.

On Sunday, an Israeli reservist on holiday in Brazil left the country after a Brazilian federal judge in Salvador ordered police to open an investigation into allegations that he had committed war crimes while serving with the military in Gaza.

The Hind Rajab Foundation, the pro-Palestinian group which brought the action, says on its website it "focuses on offensive legal action against perpetrators, accomplices and inciters of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Palestine."

The Belgium-based group, named after a Palestinian girl killed in Gaza last year, also said it had filed evidence of alleged war crimes with the ICC against 1,000 Israelis, including video and audio reports, forensic reports and other documentation. The ICC confirmed it had received a filing and said it would "analyze the materials submitted, as appropriate".

Israel's foreign ministry offered assistance to the reservist singled out by the action but officials said the issue was not widespread.

"This is a phenomenon of very limited scope in numbers," foreign ministry director general Eden Bar Tal told reporters in Jerusalem, saying there had been no more than 10-12 cases since the beginning of Israel's campaign in Gaza 15 months ago.

"There was no warrant issued in any of these cases. So it was, I would say, a relatively strong PR activity but with very low, very, very low - zero - in judicial results," he said.

"We believe it's a lot of propaganda activity in general and it's sponsored by entities, a very low number of entities, that have direct connections to terrorist organizations," he said.

Hind Rajab Foundation founder, Dyab Abou Jahjah, posts messages on the social media platform X promising to file legal action against Israeli soldiers and asking for help identifying them. He has also posted messages in support of the Iranian-backed Hezbollah movement, designated as a terrorist organization by many Western countries.

The group did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The case in Brazil attracted wide attention in Israel, underscoring fears that individuals beyond the government and military leadership could be drawn into the war crimes issue, particularly through social media posts.

The Israeli military has warned reservists that they could face arrest abroad over alleged war crimes in Gaza, according to documents published by Israeli media. The left-wing Haaretz newspaper said complaints against IDF soldiers have been filed in South Africa, Belgium and France as well as Brazil.

However, Rubens Becak, a law professor at the University of Sao Paulo in Brazil, said it was not always straightforward for third countries to respond to suits of this kind.

"Without specific legislation, it becomes very difficult for institutions such as the Federal Police to act in cases like this," he said.