300,000 weapons, equipment items returned to IDF during no-questions-asked collection drive

The IDF has collected over 300,000 pieces of military equipment, including 210 firearms and thousands of grenades, during a no-questions-asked weapons return campaign that began on November 1. The drive was extended by two days due to its success. Among the returned items were an Uzi submachine gun phased out over 30 years ago and Kalashnikov rifles from Gaza and Lebanon.

The Israeli military announced on Thursday that it has collected over 300,000 pieces of military equipment during a no-questions-asked weapons return campaign. The drive, which began on November 1, 2026, at 62 collection points across the country, was extended by two days due to its success and will now run until Monday. The IDF stated that soldiers in the standing army and reserves could return weapons and gear without identifying themselves or facing prosecution for unlawful possession. Among the items returned were 210 firearms, including an Uzi submachine gun phased out over 30 years ago, Kalashnikov rifles taken from battlefields in Gaza and Lebanon, and an FN MAG machine gun. The military also collected 3,800 stun grenades, fragmentation grenades, mortars, and launchers; 8,700 uniforms; 3,000 weapon accessories; 1,600 combat equipment items; 430 medical items; and tens of thousands of rounds of ammunition. Colonel Moshe Schwartz, a senior officer in the Technology and Logistics Directorate, said the amnesty was designed to encourage returns without fear of prosecution, emphasizing the importance of recovering ammunition and weapons that could fall into the wrong hands. The last such drive was in 2018, and before that in 2016. The article notes that the campaign aims to strengthen public safety and ensure weapons are held only by authorized personnel.