Gun Control Group Renews Call to Ban SKS Rifle Sales After Montreal Shooting
PolySeSouvient is pushing for an immediate halt to new SKS sales, citing the weapon's repeated use in high-profile shootings across Canada.
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A prominent gun control group is calling for an immediate end to new sales of SKS rifles following this week's deadly shooting in Montreal that killed police officer Mohamed Lamine Benredouane and civilian bystander Michel Mizrahi.
Images circulating from the shooting scene suggest a long gun on the ground appears to be an SKS model, though police have not officially identified the firearm used. PolySeSouvient, the gun control advocacy group, says now is the time to act.
"The current pace is indefensible, and there is no official timeline," the group's statement says. "These weapons remain widely available, repeatedly linked to violence, and treated with a leniency they do not merit."
Since May 2020, Ottawa has outlawed about 2,500 types of firearms deemed fit only for battlefields. The SKS rifle is not among them—it remains commonly used in Indigenous communities for hunting food, though it has also been used in police killings and other high-profile shootings in recent years.
Ottawa says it is carrying out a broad review of Canada's firearms classification that will include consultations with Indigenous communities on the SKS. PolySeSouvient is calling for a "precise and accelerated schedule" for consultations and regulatory action. The group also flagged a loophole: owners who declared prohibited firearms under the buyback program can take public money and buy a new SKS rifle.