On CNN & TIME October 17th:

A soldier at the U.S. Army sniper school in Ft. Benning, GA takes aim with a .50-caliber rifle

October 15, 1999
Web posted at: 2:21 p.m. EDT (1821 GMT)

(CNN) -- Ever since the war with Iraq, hardcore gun enthusiasts have coveted the American military rifle that stopped Saddam Hussein's armored vehicles in their tracks. The .50-caliber rifle can be purchased at many American gun stores, with fewer restrictions than handguns.

AT A GLANCE Facts about the .50-caliber rifle. Click here.

VIDEO View an excerpt of CNN & TIME's "Weapons of War." The full story airs on CNN Sunday, October 17, at 9 p.m. ET and again at 9 p.m. PT. Windows Media 28K 80K

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Also available -- armor-piercing incendiary .50-caliber ammunition -- millions of rounds that the Pentagon paid an ammunition manufacturer to take off its hands. More than 100,000 rounds have made their way to the civilian market where, according to a General Accounting Office investigation, they are incredibly easy to obtain.

The .50-caliber rifle has raised a familiar question in the endless battle over gun rights and gun controls: how available should this weapon be to American civilians? Are these weapons a national security threat, as some in Washington claim, or merely the Cadillac of guns for the serious shooter and collector? Legislation to limit the availability of the .50-caliber sniper rifle and to curtail the sale of its surplus military ammunition has been introduced by House Democrats. The measures are currently in committee.

• Full text of the Military Armor Piercing Ammunition Resale Limitation Act of 1999 (HR2729)

• Full text of the Military Sniper Weapon Regulation Act of 1999 (HR2127)

• CNN & TIME: The Weekly Newsmagazine