Istiglal anti-materiel rifle

The İstiglal IST-14.5 anti-materiel rifle is a recoil-operated, semi-automatic anti-materiel sniper rifle produced by Telemexanika zavodu, subsidiary of the Ministry of Defence Industry of Azerbaijan.
The Istiglal is chambered for the 14.5×114mm round.

History

Although developed in 2008, it was only revealed in 2009 during the International Defense Exhibition Fair. Its appearance has attracted a huge number of visitors.
It has been exported to the Turkish Armed Forces and the Pakistan Armed Forces.

Design

The Istiglal can be taken down into 2 separate components for easy transportation. The rifle is said to be operable in adverse weather, such as rain and dirt with temperature ranges from.

Variants

Mübariz (''Fighter'')

This weapon is named after Mubariz Ibrahimov, the National Hero of Azerbaijan. It is a 12.7×108mm version of the Istiglal 14.5mm anti-materiel sniper rifle introduced by the Ministry of Defense Industry of Azerbaijan. The 12.7mm Mubariz sniper rifle is much lighter in comparison to the Istiglal at 15 kg with a five-round magazine.

Users

: In use by the Azerbaijani Armed Forces.
: Used by the Pakistan Army; more planned to be procured.
: The Turkish Armed Forces is interested in importing the rifle and is having talks with the Azerbaijani Armed Forces. An unknown number of Istiglals were purchased. In April 2011, Mechanical and Chemical Industry Corporation announced that sniper rifle, which will be produced jointly, will differ much from the model that is being tested in Azerbaijan. Changes will be made in the design, weight and some systems of the weapon. The production of IST-12.7 sniper rifle in Turkey is the first military production transfer of Azerbaijan.