Iraq is one of the most heavily armed countries in the world. It is believed that there are enough guns in Iraq for at last every person in Iraq to possess one, a level similar to gun ownership in clans in Yemen and Somalia, as well as in the United States. With a population of approximately 24 million, that means there could be millions of small arms in the hands of civilians. The gun culture is pervasive in Iraq. There is even an Iraqi saying, ‘Give everything to your friend, except your car, your wife, and your gun.
in February, 2003, Saddam’s government held a parade of thousands of small arms-bearing civilians to march down the streets of Mosul to demonstrate the capacity of ordinary Iraqis to wage war. All kinds, many old but also many new, the latter including AK-47 true assault rifles capable of full-automatic fire, and Israeli Uzis and German MP5 submachine guns. Civilians even had rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs).