CJEU dismisses Czech Republic’s case against EU firearms directive

The Court of Justice of the European Union has dismissed the Czech Republic’s case against the validity of an EU directive introducing stricter rules on the acquisition and possession of firearms, Czech Television reported on Tuesday. The Czech government hoped to cancel the directive, which bans certain semi-automatic weapons and magazines, because it considered it too restrictive on gun owners.

The directive was originally proposed in reaction to a wave of terrorist attacks in Europe and was approved by the European Council and Parliament in 2017. The court stated on Tuesday that the Czech objections were unfounded. EU authorities did not exceed their powers by adopting the directive, nor did they interfere with the rights of arms owners or holders, Czech Television reports.