Carlo (submachine gun)
Palestinian improvised submachine gun
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Carlo (Arabic: ÙارÙÙ; [kar.lu]), also referred to as the Carl Gustav (Arabic: ÙارÙÙجستاÙ; [kar.lu.dÊis.taf])[4] is an improvised submachine gun manufactured by small workshops in the Palestinian territories. The design was inspired by and named after the Swedish Carl Gustaf m/45 and its Egyptian Port Said variant;[5] however, the similarity is often only passing.[1]
- Various Palestinian militants
- Palestinian and Israeli criminals
| Carlo | |
|---|---|
A Carlo seized by IDF forces at a military checkpoint near Nablus, 2006 | |
| Type | Submachine gun |
| Place of origin | Palestine |
| Service history | |
| Used by |
|
| Wars | Israeli-Arab conflict |
| Production history | |
| Designed | 2000(?) |
| Manufacturer | Small metalworking shops |
| Produced | 2000(?)-present |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | variable |
| Length | variable |
| Barrel length | variable |
| Cartridge | Various cartridges |
| Calibre | Various calibers |
| Action | Simple (straight) blowback |
| Rate of fire | variable |
| Muzzle velocity | variable |
| Feed system | Various magazine capacities |
| References | [1][2][3] |
The weapon is used by various Palestinian militants, including Hamas's Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades and Palestinian Islamic Jihad's Al-Quds Brigades.[6] It has also become popular with criminal groups in countries outside of the Levant, including in South American countries such as Brazil and Chile, Croatia, Ukraine, Italy, the Caribbean and Australia.[1]
The Carlo's homemade nature makes it affordable on the black market, where it is purchased not only by Palestinians targeting Israelis,[7] but also by Arab-Israeli gangs.[4] The Carlo is cheap and requires little skill or equipment to manufacture, but it is inaccurate and prone to jamming and misfiring.[1][2]
History
Throughout the 2000s, it was primarily made and used by Arab-Israeli gangs, meant to serve as a cheaper alternative to the AK-47 and the Tavor.[8] Palestinian militants had started using it by 2014, as the IDF reported netting several Carlos in a raid on a Nablus arms cache.[9]
It gained widespread use during the 2015â2016 wave of violence in the IsraeliâPalestinian conflict; according to The Guardian, it was used in up to 68 attacks during this period.[4] Among the most notable include the death of Hadar Cohen[10][11] and the June 2016 Tel Aviv shooting.[12][13][14]
Carlos were used in the 2017 Temple Mount shooting, which resulted in the deaths of two Israeli Druze policemen, Haiel Sitawe and Kamil Shnaan.[15] The two perpetrators of the 2025 Ramot Junction shooting also used Carlos, killing six before being shot themselves.[16]
Design
Produced in several locations via underground workshops and often with second-hand gun parts, the specifications are not uniform.[3] Initially, it was made partially with scrapped pipes. Some more recent makes of the Carlo have been made with rifled barrels, raising the price from under USD$800 to nearly $4,000.[1]
As of recent, most parts are cannibalized from lost/stolen M4-type rifles and magazines, taken from IDF training areas or people's houses.[2][3] Others are made from rifle accessories that are easily purchased online,[3] and some even incorporate parts of airsoft or paintball rifles.[17][18]
Often chambered for 9Ã19mm handgun cartridges, variants for .22 LR, .32 ACP, 9Ã18mm, and 5.56Ã45mm are also produced,[1] but the presence of the latter is suggested to be impossible since samples of the weapon had 5.56 NATO magazines modified to house Uzi magazines or sometimes with pistol-based magazines.[3] Some of them were made with M16-type pistol grips and Uzi-based 25-round magazines.[2][1] One instance of a Carlo seized had a STANAG magazine used to hide a 9Ã19 Uzi or a homemade magazine.[19] Others were based on the MP5 and the AK rifles.[1] They can only fire in full auto in an open bolt with the ejection port on the left side and the charging handle on the right side.[2]
The Carlo, made to be compact, was best used by being concealed on the left side of someone's clothes (usually jacket) with the right hand being used to draw it.[2]
