More about the IWI Tavor used by the Baton Rouge Murderer

The IWI Tavor is the civilian version of the TAR-21 which was fielded by the Israeli Defense Forces in the early 2000s as an M16/M4 replacement. The TAR-21 would later be replaced by the more compact X95.

The Tavor is a bullpup configured rifle, putting the action of the rifle behind the trigger group. This configuration has some advantages, chiefly a shorter overall length. It also shifts the weight to the rear, which some operators feel makes it easier to handle when shouldered. Bullpup’s do have some shortcomings – reloading is akin to playing a violin, and requires some training. Also, the triggers rarely feel as good as other rifles do to the required extra linkage.

To my knowledge, this is the first case of a domestic terrorist using a Tavor or any bullpup rifle. Let me know in the comments if you are aware of any others.

This article was originally published on The Arms Guide and was written by Richard Henry

Featured image courtesy of (LOUISIANA STATE POLICE)