New Zealand prime minister announces sweeping gun law changes including banning all assault rifles after mosque shooting massacre

Posted By: Staff
March 20, 2019 @ 10:48 pm
ABC World

Igor Ilnitckii/iStock

Igor Ilnitckii/iStock(CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand) — The prime minister of New Zealand announced that assault rifles, such as the ones used last Friday in the massacre at two mosques in Christchurch, will be banned from the country once approved by legislators.

“Today I am announcing that New Zealand will ban all military-style semi-automatic weapons. We will also ban all assault rifles. We will also ban all high capacity magazines,” Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said in a statement Wednesday. “We will ban all parts with the ability to convert semi-automatic or any other type of firearm into a military style semi-automatic weapon.”

Ardern said she expects the gun laws to be passed by the end of a “two-week sitting session” that concludes April 11.

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