I heard a story, possibly an urban legend, that the Israeli army had classified a particularly underpowered .22 rifle as a "less lethal" weapon so they could use it to shoot protesters, juvenile rock-throwers, and other targets with which they were supposed to exercise a certain amount of restraint. Soldiers then measured their marksmanship by how lethal they could be with this "less lethal" weapon until the government was forced to correct the "mistake."
This is a pretty ugly story that would have gratifying appeal to many people on either side of the issue (I heard it from a conservative guy who was grinning with glee at the supposed cleverness of the Israelis) so there's a good chance it's an urban legend. Confirmation or refutation would be welcome.
Not necessarily. In the context I heard it in, it was anti-Palestinian.
P.S. To go further, the guy who told me the story was planning on buying such a gun if he could confirm it, just to have a conversation piece. Plus the story sounds perfectly in line with the bizarre results you get when bureaucrats are asked to classify things.
This is a pretty ugly story that would have gratifying appeal to many people on either side of the issue (I heard it from a conservative guy who was grinning with glee at the supposed cleverness of the Israelis) so there's a good chance it's an urban legend. Confirmation or refutation would be welcome.