Word: ak
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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...Bruce van Voorst had ever seen was a collection of grimy peasant tents spread out on a dusty knoll outside the town of Mahabad, in the Kurdish mountains of western Iran. There, a clientele of mercenaries and international agents milled about, examining Israeli-made UZI automatics, Chinese and Soviet AK-47s, boxes of grenades, pre-World War II Czech-made Brno rifles and spanking new U.S. Colt .45 automatics. "For the serious customer," says Van Voorst, "a salesman would casually discharge a few rounds into a nearby hillside...
...cover story was researched by Betty Satterwhite Sutter, who uses non-lethal ballpoint pens, but has worked on so many armament stories during the past five years that she admits, "My dreams are invaded by visions of AK-47 rifles and rocket launchers." Associate Editor Walter Isaacson, who wrote the cover, concluded after assessing the thousands of words filed by TIME correspondents: "The arms trade has created a global powder...
Less complex Soviet weapons, such as rifles and machine guns, tend to be easily produced and highly reliable. The AK-47 Kalashnikov is the most esteemed and bestselling assault rifle in the world today, partly because it uses standardized ammunition available almost anywhere. The U.S. Army's M-16 is far less attractive on international arms markets; it has never lived down a much deserved reputation, earned in Viet Nam, for jamming frequently...
Finally, we could realize fully the horror of the AK-47 and recognize as well the horror of oppression. And, when the gut-turning indignity of slavery makes living worthless, we would fight. Frederick Forsyth took this last premise, twisted it slightly, and turned it into a novel; now John Irvin has turned the book into a near-flawless movie...
...funeral of a local official of Prime Minister Robert Mugabe's Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU) party. Suddenly an armed band of renegades attacked the group. A hand grenade was lobbed inside the house, and the walls were raked with a hail of automatic fire from Soviet-made AK-47s. Four of the mourners were killed; 16 were wounded...