France to collect millions of old, unregistered firearms across the country

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The pistol the elderly French woman inherited from her grandfather had once belonged to a German soldier, killed in a war fought on France's soil in the last century.

Now the woman has turned the heirloom over to police for fear that her grandchildren would stumble upon it.

French authorities want others to follow the unnamed woman's example by turning in millions of old firearms, remnants of the two World Wars and long-abandoned hunting excursions.

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The country has launched a nationwide weeklong campaign to collect old, unregistered weapons that authorities believe are tucked away in attics and storerooms across the country that saw much of the twentieth century's fiercest fighting.

"We believe there are about 5 or 6 million weapons that are being kept in an irregular manner by our fellow citizens," said Jean-Simon Merandat, Head of the Interior Ministry’s Central Service for Arms and Explosives. "Eighty to ninety percent of these weapons are in their possession due to an inheritance."

People in line return their weapons to the Ustaritz gendarmerie of southwestern France on Dec.1, 2022. (AP Photo/Bob Edme)

The campaign so far has been "a real success," rounding up 1.6 million munitions pieces, although only 65,000 firearms have been collected. There will be no legal consequences if weapons are handed over by the Dec. 2 deadline, authorities said.

The overwhelming majority of unregistered weapons that will be collected will be destroyed. But a prized few that have remarkable stories to tell will be saved and preserved by the state.

"We expect those with historic or cultural value to be spared destruction and brought to one or several museums," Merandat added.

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Anyone wishing to hold on to their weapon and join the ranks of France's 5 million legal gun owners can do so if they seek to obtain a legal permit. With a population of 67 million people, France has proportionally much fewer guns than countries such as the US.

A public outcry over a spike in the number of murders of women by their partners has also prompted authorities to push ahead with the gun collection drive.