Syrian Engineer Develops Robotic Sniper Rifle

A Syrian engineer has built a robotized machine gun that can detect a target and fire by itself.

Using a Kalashnikov AK-47 rifle as the weapon, Hamzah Salam, an engineer from the village of Shreihi in Suwayda, southern Syria, has built a custom automatic rifle which he has dubbed as an ‘electronic sniper.’

“The automated system monitors the situation and, if necessary, opens fire. My ‘electronic sniper’ is very convenient; it can be controlled remotely or placed in an autonomous operation mode,” Salam was quoted as saying by Sputnik news Thursday.

Describing how his weapon works, Hamza said the platform “can use any small-arms weapon, from a machine gun to a sniper rifle. Cameras transmit a signal to a computer, which analyzes the data received. Its main task is to track movement. The computer has several preset scenarios. If it notices odd behavior in a given quadrant, it will open fire.”

He said that the system is fitted with a night-vision device and can rotate 360 degrees providing day-night coverage.

Details of how the system acquires the target or if it differentiates between friend and foe were not revealed.