War profiteer companies

Almaz-Antey is the largest Russian arms company, made up of dozens of smaller companies. It is owned by the state, employs around 98,000 people, and produces a wide range of missiles, anti-aircraft systems, radars, automated turrets, naval artillery, and firearms.

SAAB is a Swedish arms company, founded in 1937. The company builds a wide range of military aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles, and missiles.

Our War Profiteer of the Month series normally focuses on one company - in this feature, we provide details on a number of separate companies who have all manufactured weapons used against the Gilet Jaunes protest movement in France: Brügger & Thomet, Alsetex and Verney-Carron.

AmTec Less Lethal Systems (ALS) specialises in a wide range of “less lethal” weapons and equipment designed for use by police, law enforcement, security, prison and military personnel.

Sig Sauer is a brand name used by two sister companies based in Germany and the USA. Both companies specialise in the production of pistols and firearms, arming military and police forces around the world.

Safariland is an American company, founded in California in 1964, specialising in a wide range of products and services for police and security forces. Safariland is made up of a number of different companies and brands, and has estimated revenues of $500 million.

General Atomics is an American company, formed in 1955, with headquarters in San Diego in California. In 2016 General Atomics ranked 46th on the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute’s (SIPRI) list of the Top 100 arms-producing and military servicing companies.

L3 Technologies is one of the world’s biggest arms companies, ranking 8th in the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) annual list of the top 100 arms companies. The company was founded in 1997, and by 2017 the companies revenues were over $9.5 billion.

Rheinmetall is a German defence and automotive company founded in 1889, and is Germany's biggest arms manufacturer. In the 2017 fiscal year, Rheinmetall's defence sales were €3.036 billion (the automotive segment were €2.861 billion), and the company employs a total of 23,726 people.

Imperial Armour is a South African company based in Durban, which produces a wide range of clothing, uniforms, boots, bullet proof vests and body armour, helmets, bags, and equipment such as binoculars, belts and holsters for military, police, fire and rescue, and demining groups.

Otokar is the biggest private arms company in Turkey, and specialises in military land vehicles such as tanks, armoured personnel carriers, and turret systems. Formed in 1963, the companies vehicles are now in use in 30 different countries, and the company claims there are now over 30,000 Otokar vehicles in service around the world.

A new report called “A Lab and A Showroom” exposes how the extreme violence used by the Israeli military against Palestinian protesters also supports the development and sale of military equipment by Israeli arms companies.