Samaria civilian security squads to receive sniper rifles

In a first, civilian security units throughout the 30-plus communities in Samaria will soon be equipped with brand-new designated-marksman rifles (DMRs), the Samaria Regional Council said on Wednesday.

The Gilboa DMR rifles, which have an effective range of more than 700 meters (765 yards), were purchased by Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan with the help of donors from around the world.

“We are doing everything we can to be as prepared as possible for any scenario, and we thank our friends worldwide, who are mobilizing and helping Samaria during this difficult and tense period,” said Dagan.

“This tremendous support allows us to be strong and confident, standing shoulder to shoulder with the Israel Defense Forces and the defense establishment, in order to guarantee our security,” he said.

According to the Samaria Regional Council, the new rifles are considered the best in the Jewish state and “change the equation in the face of threats of harm to the lives of the communities’ residents.”

Since the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023 massacre in southern Israel, the Samaria Regional Council, with the help of global donors, has acquired many pieces of new equipment, including hundreds of IWI ARAD and Emtan rifles, 700 pistol conversion kits and 1,300 vests and helmets.

The council also purchased advanced defense equipment including surveillance drones and night vision devices, it said on Wednesday.

With the assistance of donors, the council also helped subsidize the purchase of 500 guns for female residents of Samaria “with the aim of strengthening the communities’ defense capabilities,” it stated.

Standby squads in Judea and Samaria are made up of locals, usually former military, who train together and serve as first-response teams, holding down the fort until regular IDF troops arrive.

At least two kibbutzim in Israel’s western Negev were saved during Hamas’s Oct. 7 massacre because of the actions of such squads.

Late last year, the United States blocked a shipment of some 27,000 U.S.-made rifles intended for the Israel Police out of fear they could make their way into the hands of “extremist Israeli settlers” in Judea and Samaria.

In the first half of 2024, Judea and Samaria saw more than 500 Arab terrorist attacks each month on average, according to figures published on Aug. 1 by Rescuers Without Borders (Hatzalah Judea and Samaria).

During that period, first responders recorded 3,272 terrorist acts in the region, including 1,868 stonings, 456 fire bombings, 299 attacks involving explosives and 109 shootings.

Terrorists murdered 14 people and wounded more than 155 others in Judea and Samaria between January and June, the rescue group said.