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102-517: The Al-Marada's military wing was secretly formed in 1967 and at the outbreak of the war in April 1975, its fighters numbered just 700–800 men armed with obsolete firearms acquired on the black market . They first came to light on 17 August 1970 at Beirut, when Tony Frangieh forced his way into the Parliament House leading a group of armed militiamen in order to secure his father's election to

204-507: A false flag operation and massacred 13 Kataeb members in Chmout on 22 April 1979, being tipped off about the gathering of the victims by the Syrians. The ZLA/Marada militia destroyed the residence of Greek Orthodox MP Fouad Ghosn at the town of Kousba , Koura district in retaliation after he voted for Bachir Gemayel during the 1982 Lebanese presidential election . On 2 May 1987,

306-416: A front business that is not illegal. Franchi SPAS-12 The Franchi SPAS-12 is a combat shotgun manufactured by Italian firearms company Franchi from 1979 to 2000. The SPAS-12 is a dual-mode shotgun, adjustable for semi-automatic or pump-action operation. The SPAS-12 was sold to military and police users worldwide, as well as on the civilian market. The appearance and intended purpose of

408-399: A "quick employment safety". Lever safeties were recalled by Franchi and were replaced through the importer American Arms in the early 1990s. There are two types of push-button safeties. The earliest version would release the hammer on a safe up to 1/4in. of travel when the trigger was depressed; this would cause a lockup of the action that would require the user to re-lock the bolt assembly to

510-431: A "tax gap" of $ 450–600 billion. The "unrecorded economy" circumvents the institutional rules that define the reporting requirements of government statistical agencies. A summary measure of the unrecorded economy is the amount of unrecorded income, namely the amount of income that should (under existing rules and conventions) be recorded in national accounting systems (e.g., National Income and Product Accounts ) but

612-585: A ZLA unit called Marada 3/400 set up an ambush meant to kill Bahaa Douaihy and Roumanos Douaihy amid the long-running Frangieh and Douaihy clans feud. Upon the end of the war in October 1990, Al-Marada/ZLA militia forces operating in Beirut and the 'Northern Canton' were ordered by the Lebanese Government on March 28, 1991 to disband and surrender their heavy weaponry by April 30 as stipulated by

714-446: A black market exists to supply them. Despite law enforcement efforts to intercept them, demand remains high, providing a large profit motive for organized criminal groups to keep drugs supplied. The United Nations has reported that the retail market value of illegal drugs is $ 502 billion. Although law enforcement agencies intercept a fraction of drug traffickers and incarcerate thousands of wholesale and retail sellers and users,

816-497: A black market. Money may be exchangeable for a differing amount of the same currency if it has been acquired illegally and needs to be laundered before the money can be used. Counterfeit money may be sold for a lesser amount of genuine currency. The rate of exchange between a local and foreign currency may be subject to a black market, often described as a " parallel exchange rate " or similar terms. This may happen for one or more of several reasons: A government may officially set

918-401: A bolt handle cut in the bolt body. The SPAS and LAW could only accept 2 3 ⁄ 4 " shells. The SAS-12 has a barrel length of 21 + 1 ⁄ 2  in (55 cm), an overall length of 41 + 1 ⁄ 2  in (105 cm), a weight of 7 lb 4 oz (3.3 kg) and a capacity of 8 rounds in the magazine + 1 in the chamber. The semi-automatic-only Franchi LAW-12 Model

1020-477: A distinct regional orientation, since its military HQ was established at the small town of Ehden near Zgharta , where the latter residents spend the summer. While their membership and command structure was predominantly Maronite , they did included a number of Greek-Catholics and Greek-Orthodox into their ranks. They initially allied themselves with the other Christian rightist parties' militias – Kataeb Regulatory Forces (KRF), Tigers Militia , Guardians of

1122-472: A foreign currency for the local currency. The U.S. dollar is viewed as a relatively stable and safe currency and is often used abroad as a second currency. In 2012, US$ 340 billion, roughly 37 percent of all U.S. currency, was believed to be circulating abroad. The most recent study of the amount of currency held overseas suggests that only 25 percent of U.S. currency was held abroad in 2014. The widespread substitution of U.S. currency for local currency

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1224-403: A low-profit item for the rum-runners, and they moved on to smuggling Canadian whisky , French champagne , and English gin to major cities like New York City and Boston , where prices ran high. It was said that some ships carried $ 200,000 (roughly equivalent to US$ 4.5 million in 2022 ) in contraband in a single run. The United Kingdom has some of the highest taxes on tobacco products in

1326-403: A magazine cut-off feature, which prevents the magazine from releasing a new round when the action is cycled. This allows the operator to load a different type of round into the chamber without first unloading the chambered round, and the second that would otherwise subsequently be released from the magazine. A unique feature of the folding-stock variants is the butt hook. With the stock extended,

1428-805: A mechanized corps made of ex- Lebanese Army M113 armored personnel carriers and gun trucks or ' Technicals '. The latter consisted of commandeered Jeep CJ-5 and Jeep CJ-8 (civilian versions of the Willys M38A1 MD jeep ), Land-Rover series II–III , Santana Series III (Spanish-produced version of the Land-Rover series III), Toyota Land Cruiser (J40) , Toyota Land Cruiser (J44) , Dodge Power Wagon W200 , Dodge D series (3rd generation) , GMC Sierra Custom K25/K30 , Chevrolet C-10/C-15 Cheyenne and Chevrolet C-20 Scottsdale light pickup trucks armed with heavy machine guns , recoilless rifles and anti-aircraft autocannons . For logistical support,

1530-400: A person or group (e.g., a criminal gang) indicates to a store owner that they could protect her/his store from potential damage, damage that the same person or group would otherwise inflict, while the correlation of threat and protection may be more or less deniably veiled, distinguishing it from the more direct act of extortion . Racketeering is often associated with organized crime . The term

1632-522: A premium to acquire it. U.S. currency is viewed as a relatively stable store of value and, since it does not leave a paper trail, it is also a convenient medium of exchange for both illegal transactions and for unreported income both in the U.S. and abroad. More recently cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin have been used as a medium of exchange in black market transactions. Cryptocurrencies are sometimes favored over centralized currency due to their pseudonymous nature and their ability to be traded over

1734-401: A problem, such as for a problem that does not actually exist or that would not otherwise exist if the racket did not exist. Conducting a racket is called racketeering. The potential problem may be caused by the same party that offers to solve it, although that fact may be concealed, with the intent to engender continual patronage for the racketeer. An archetype is the protection racket , wherein

1836-442: A process used to conceal the illegitimate source of the money. Because of the clandestine nature of the black economy, it is not possible to determine its size and scope. The literature on the black market has not established a common terminology and has instead offered many synonyms including subterranean, hidden, grey , shadow, informal, clandestine, illegal, unobserved, unreported, unrecorded, second, parallel, and black. There

1938-730: A red dye in the UK, a green dye in Ireland). The saving is attractive enough to make for a black market in agricultural diesel, which was estimated in 2007 to cost the UK £350 million annually in lost tax. In countries including India and Nepal, the price of fuel is set by the government, and it is illegal to sell the fuel at a higher price. During the petrol crisis in Nepal, black marketing in fuel became common, especially during mass petrol shortage. At times, people queued for hours or even overnight to get fuel. Petrol pump operators were alleged to hoard

2040-422: A short-stroke gas piston system. When a shell is fired, the pressure makes the bolt move rearward but the bolt will stop before opening as it deploys a single top locking lug. The gas vents into the barrel and the gas port is located towards the end of the barrel. From the gas port, the gas vents downwards into the gas block where it pushes the piston rearward. Because of the presence of the magazine tube and to avoid

2142-653: A total comprising 800 full-time fighters and 1,500 irregulars. At its height in the late 1970s, the Al-Marada mustered some 3,500 men and women equipped with modern small-arms. Prior to the war, the ZLA militia initially received covert support from the Lebanese Army , who besides providing training, weapons and ammunition, also lent to the ZLA sophisticated mobile communications equipment. Additional weapons, vehicles, and other non-lethal equipment were initially procured on

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2244-411: Is rent control and subsidized affordable housing , which provide housing below the market cost, there may be a black market for housing rentals. For instance, in the UK there is illegal subletting of social housing homes where the tenant illegally rents out the government-subsidized home at a higher rent. In Sweden, rental contracts with regulated rent can be bought on the black market, either from

2346-416: Is difficult. Low-tax states are generally the major tobacco producers, and have come under criticism for their reluctance to increase taxes. North Carolina eventually agreed to raise its taxes from 5 cents to 35 cents per pack of 20 cigarettes, although this remains far below the national average. As of 2010 , South Carolina has refused to follow suit and raise taxes from seven cents per pack (the lowest in

2448-412: Is distinct from the grey market , in which commodities are distributed through channels that, while legal, are unofficial, unauthorized, or unintended by the original manufacturer, and the white market, in which trade is legal and official. Black money is the proceeds of an illegal transaction, on which income and other taxes have not been paid. Black money is often associated with money laundering ,

2550-488: Is illegal or highly regulated in some countries. This demonstrates the underground economy, because of consistent high demand from customers, relatively high pay, but labor-intensive and low-skilled work, which attracts a continual supply of workers. While prostitution exists in every country, studies show that it tends to flourish more in poorer countries, and in areas with large numbers of unattached men, such as around military bases. For instance, an empirical study showed that

2652-577: Is known as de facto dollarisation , and has been observed in transition countries such as Cambodia and in some Latin American countries. Some countries, such as Ecuador, abandoned their local currency and used U.S. dollars, essentially for this reason, a process known as de jure dollarization (see also the example of the Ghanaian cedi from the 1970s and 1980s). If foreign currency is difficult or illegal for local citizens to acquire, they will pay

2754-494: Is no single underground economy; there are many. These underground economies are omnipresent, existing in market-oriented as well as in centrally planned nations, be they developed or developing. Those engaged in underground activities circumvent, escape, or are excluded from the institutional system of rules, rights, regulations, and enforcement penalties that govern formal agents engaged in production and exchange. Different types of underground activities are distinguished according to

2856-478: Is not compliant with an institutional set of rules. If the rule defines the set of goods and services whose production and distribution are prohibited or restricted by law, non-compliance with the rule constitutes a black-market trade since the transaction itself is illegal. Such transactions include the illegal drug trade , prostitution (where prohibited), illegal currency transactions, and human trafficking . Participants try to hide their illegal behavior from

2958-401: Is not. Unrecorded income is a particular problem in transition countries that switched from a socialist accounting system to UN standard national accounting . New methods have been proposed for estimating the size of the unrecorded (non-observed) economy. However little consensus exists on the size of the unreported economies of transitional countries. The " informal economy " circumvents

3060-428: Is purchased on the black market". Smuggling one truckload of cigarettes from a low-tax U.S. state to a high-tax state can result in a profit of up to $ 3 million. Because traffic crossing U.S. state borders is not usually stopped or inspected to the same extent as happens at the country's international borders, interdicting this sort of smuggling (especially without causing major disruption to interstate commerce)

3162-422: Is traded. Goods and services acquired illegally and/or transacted for in an illegal manner may exchange above or below the price of legal market transactions: No government, no global nonprofit, no multinational enterprise can seriously claim to be able to replace the 1.8 billion jobs created by the economic underground. In truth, the best hope for growth in most emerging economies lies in the shadows. Even when

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3264-580: The Internet . Within the European single market , it is legal for a person or business to buy fuel in one EU state for use in a vehicle in another, as well as a small amount of fuel in a container, but as with other goods, taxes (such as VAT ) will generally be payable by the final customer at the physical place of making the purchase. When fuel is transported across borders for resale, such taxes can often be recovered and then relevant taxes are payable in

3366-668: The Kataeb Party or 'Phalange' – and their disagreements with the other Christian leaders over their tactical alliance with Israel , prompted them to break from the Lebanese Front in 1977, an act that would ultimately led to the tragic events of the following year. On June 7 1978, six Marada militiamen would assassinate the Kataeb party leader Joud el Bayeh who represented the party in Zgharta and wanted to open an office in

3468-528: The Koura District , with the ZLA eventually managing to drive out the SSNP and assert their dominance over the entire region until the end of the war. It was also alleged that they received the tacit backing from a contingent of unspecified number from the 1,700 men-strong Lebanese Army's Seventh Brigade stationed at Byblos , being regarded as loyal to former president Suleiman Frangieh. Amid tensions in

3570-561: The PBS documentary Prohibition , the term "bootlegging" was popularized when thousands of city dwellers would sell liquor from flasks they kept in their bootleg all across major cities and rural areas. The term "rum-running" most likely originated at the start of Prohibition in the United States (1920–1933), when ships from Bimini in the western Bahamas transported cheap Caribbean rum to Florida speakeasies . Rum's cheapness made it

3672-542: The Palestine Liberation Organization 's (PLO) military presence in Lebanon and the preservation of the pre-war Christian-dominated political status quo, they were generally regarded as a corps of feudal retainers infamous for their brutality and corruption. Structured along semi-conventional lines into mechanized infantry, 'commando', signals, medical and military police branches, the ZLA had

3774-549: The Taif Agreement . Disbanded in the early 1990s as a military force, they later re-emerged as a legal political organization, the Marada Movement ( Arabic : تيار المردة | Tayyar al-Marada ). The ZLA is no longer active. Black market A black market , underground economy , shadow market or shadow economy is a clandestine market or series of transactions that has some aspect of illegality or

3876-699: The Zastava M70 , Zastava M80 , and former East German MPi-KMS-72 assault rifles). Shotguns consisted of Winchester Model 1200 , Franchi SPAS-12 , and Franchi SPAS-15 semi-automatic models. Sniper rifles were also used, and models comprised the Dragunov SVD-63 , Tabuk , Zastava M76/M78 and SSG 82 . Handguns included MAB PA-15 pistols , FN P35 , SIG Sauer P220 and Glock 19 pistols. Squad weapons consisted of Chatellerault FM Mle 1924/29 , Bren Mk. I .303 (7.7mm) , FN MAG , Rheinmetall MG 3 , VZ 59 , Zastava M77 , and PK/PKM (variants included

3978-408: The government , or included in the gross national product (GNP), unlike the formal economy. In developed countries, the informal sector is characterized by unreported employment . This is hidden from the state for tax, social security, or labour law purposes but is legal in other aspects. The term black market can also be used in reference to a specific part of the economy in which contraband

4080-800: The Al-Marada/ZLA were behind the assassinations of Bashir Gemayel 's infant daughter and bodyguards by a car bomb explosion in February 1979 and later of Bashir himself in September 1982, although the degree of involvement of the Zgharta-based militia on any of these attacks remains unclear. After 1978, the Frangiehs switched their allegiance to the LNM camp and then to Syria, even lending their support to Syrian Army units at east Beirut against

4182-600: The Cedars (GoC), Al-Tanzim , Lebanese Youth Movement (LYM), and Tyous Team of Commandos (TTC) –, operating mainly in and out of Tripoli , and other areas of northern Lebanon, being engaged mostly in fighting local Muslim militias, but also fought in East Beirut . Thanks to the secret support provided by the Lebanese Army , by January 1976 the Frangieh-controlled militia ranks had swollen to 2,400 troops,

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4284-1019: The Chinese Type 80 and the Yugoslav Zastava M84 ) light machine guns. Heavier Browning M2HB .50 Cal , DShK M, Type 77 and NSV (or its Yugoslav variant, the Zastava M87 ) machine guns were employed as platoon and company weapons, but could also be found mounted on APCs and technicals . Portable anti-tank weapons and guided missile systems were also widely employed, comprising RPG-7 and M80 Zolja anti-tank rocket launchers , M2 Carl Gustaf 84 mm and M67 90 mm anti-tank recoilless rifles , and MILAN and BGM-71 TOW anti-tank missiles. Crew-served and indirect fire weapons included L16 81mm mortars , plus SPG-9 73 mm , B-10 82 mm , M40 106 mm and L6 Wombat 120 mm recoilless rifles (often mounted on technicals ). The Al-Marada fielded since January 1976

4386-816: The Christian militias and the Army of Free Lebanon (AFL) during the Hundred Days' War . They joined in July 1983 the Lebanese National Salvation Front (LNSF), subsequently supporting in 1988–1990 the Syrian-sponsored Taif Agreement and the parliament-based provisional government of Sunni Prime-Minister Selim Al-Hoss against General Michel Aoun 's Maronite -dominated military interim government. Pushed to

4488-522: The LAW-12 and SAS-12 were never designed to be interchangeable with the SPAS-12 as this would cause issues with the gas selector switch moving from auto to pump-action on the SPAS-12 model. The extensions have been known to spin off the front of the SPAS-12 during cycling if the extension was not tapered for the SPAS-12 retaining pin. The pump-action Franchi SAS-12 could accept 3" shells but it did not have

4590-621: The North between the Kataeb and Marada parties when the former tried to expand their power in the region, ZLA/Marada militiamen assassinated Joud el Bayeh , a Kataeb leader in Zgharta , which ignited the Ehden massacre . To seek revenge for the Ehden massacre , on 28 June 1978, ZLA militiamen captured and killed 26 Kataeb Regulatory Forces members in the villages of Qaa and Ras Baalbek . They also disguised themselves as Kataeb militiamen in

4692-527: The Presidency – an illegal move that the Lebanese official authorities proved powerless to prevent. Often described as a Mafia -style gangster organization rather than a true political party, the Al-Marada/ZLA seems to have never devised a coherent program or adhered to a particular ideology. Although conservative in outlook, sharing with the other right-wing Christian parties similar viewpoints regarding

4794-586: The SPAS-12 initially led to its "military" designation as a combat shotgun. The SPAS-12 was designed from the ground up as a rugged military shotgun, and it was named the Special Purpose Automatic Shotgun. In 1990, Franchi renamed the shotgun the Sporting Purpose Automatic Shotgun, which allowed continued sales to the United States as a limited-magazine-capacity, fixed-stock model until 1994. Following

4896-551: The SPAS-12 was externally threaded to accept a variety of attachments. The barrel is cylinder bored and spreads a normal shot charge to about 900mm at 40 meters. There are four different magazine extension tubes manufactured for the SPAS-12: Many choke types original and aftermarket exist for the SPAS-12. A 44 mm grenade launcher was used by France for explosive grenades capable of a range of 150 meters. A factory shot diverter that spreads shot vertically or horizontally

4998-487: The U.S. Coast Guard and showed promising results but again was not considered cost-effective for a contract over other available suppliers. The Assault Weapons Ban of September 1994 caused American Arms to stop the importation of the SPAS-12 with major losses of sales due to the legal restrictions invoked by the U.S. Assault Weapons Ban. Both importers placed numerous additional orders for the SPAS-12 that were never complete due to U.S. restrictions throughout importation. This

5100-401: The U.S. if aged less than 60 days. Rum-running , or bootlegging, is the illegal business of transporting ( smuggling ) alcoholic beverages where such transportation is forbidden by law. Smuggling is usually done to circumvent taxation or prohibition laws. The term rum-running is more commonly applied to smuggling over water; bootlegging is applied to smuggling over land. According to

5202-565: The USA). According to the World Health Organization (WHO), illegal organ trade occurs when organs are removed from the body for the purpose of commercial transactions. The WHO justifies its stance on the issue by stating, "Payment for... organs is likely to take unfair advantage of the poorest and most vulnerable groups, undermines altruistic donation and leads to profiteering and human trafficking." Despite prohibitions, it

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5304-575: The United States Federal Assault Weapons Ban , imports of SPAS-12 shotguns to the United States were stopped. In September 2004 the ban expired, but Franchi ended production of the SPAS-12 in 2000 to focus on the manufacturing of the SPAS-15 model. The SPAS-12's factory retail price in its final year was US$ 1,500 averaged for its final sales outside the United States to non-restricted countries. The SPAS-12

5406-589: The ZLA relied on Range Rover first generation Sport utility vehicles , Toyota Land Cruiser (J42) hardtop light pickups, Chevrolet C-50 medium-duty , Dodge F600 medium-duty and GMC C4500 medium-duty trucks , and GMC C7500 heavy-duty cargo trucks . Yugoslav Zastava M55 20mm, Soviet ZPU (ZPU-1, ZPU-2, ZPU-4) 14.5mm, and ZU-23-2 23mm AA autocannons (mostly mounted on technicals and heavier transport trucks) were employed in both air defense and direct fire support roles. These light Anti-Aircraft pieces were either seized from Lebanese Army stocks, acquired on

5508-598: The act of theft to be in the profits forgone to the pirates. However, this makes the unsubstantiated assumption that the pirates would have bought the copyrighted material if it had not been available through file sharing or other means. Copyright holders also say that they did work creating their copyrighted material and they wish to get compensated for their work. No other system than copyright has been found to compensate artists and other creators for their work, and many artists do not have an alternative source of income or another job. Many artists and film producers have accepted

5610-535: The black market include consumer-to-consumer online auction websites and private pages on social media websites. In black market venues in Cambodia, sex toys have been seized alongside aphrodisiac products. It has been suggested that if efforts in North America to ban realistic-looking sexbots succeed, it may result in a black market. People engaged in the black market may run their business hidden behind

5712-444: The black market or provided by Syria. They also maintained a small 'naval' branch equipped with some Zodiac rubber inflatable boats and converted civilian fishing craft armed with heavy machine guns and anti-aircraft autocannons , being used as a shock force for both military and barratry operations. The Frangieh clan established in 1978 their own fief in the northern Lebanon , the so-called 'Northern Canton', which comprised

5814-423: The costs of, and is excluded from the benefits and rights incorporated in, the laws and administrative rules covering property relationships, commercial licensing, labor contracts, torts, financial credit, and social security systems. A summary measure of the informal economy is the income generated by economic agents that operate informally. The informal sector is part of an economy that is not taxed , monitored by

5916-627: The country of sale, but there are no customs checks on borders between countries within the European Union Customs Union . Differences in tax rates can thus lead to opportunities for arbitrage even when prices before tax are equal, in a form that is illegal as a form of tax evasion . For example, between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland , there has often been a black market for petrol and diesel . The direction of smuggling can change depending on variation in

6018-488: The courts, as the operations are distributed and widespread, traversing national borders and thus legal systems. Since digital information can be duplicated repeatedly with no loss of quality, and passed on electronically at little to no cost, the effective underground market value of media is zero, differentiating it from nearly all other forms of underground economic activity. The issue is compounded by widespread indifference to enforcing copyright law, both with governments and

6120-642: The current tenant or sometimes directly from the property owner. Specialized black-market dealers assist the property owners with such transactions. Items such as medicines as well as essential aircraft and automobile parts (e.g. brakes, motor parts, etc.) are counterfeited on a large scale. Street vendors in countries where there is little enforcement of copyright law , particularly in Asia and Latin America, often sell copies of films , music CDs , and computer software such as video games , sometimes even before

6222-581: The demand for such drugs and profit margins encourage new distributors to enter the market. Drug legalization activists draw parallels between the illegal drug trade and the Prohibition of alcohol in the United States in the 1920s. The laws of many countries forbid or restrict the personal ownership of weapons . These restrictions can range from small knives to firearms , either altogether or by classification (e.g., caliber , handguns , automatic weapons , and explosives ). The black market supplies

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6324-773: The demands for weaponry that cannot be obtained legally or may only be obtained legally after obtaining permits and paying fees. This may be by smuggling the arms from countries where they were bought legally or stolen, or by stealing from arms manufacturers within the country itself, using insiders. In cases where the underground economy is unable to smuggle firearms, they can also satisfy requests by gunsmithing their own firearms. Those who may buy this way include criminals to use for illegal activities, gun collectors, and otherwise law-abiding citizens interested in protecting their dwellings, families, or businesses. In England and Wales, certain categories of weapons used for hunting may be owned by qualified residents but must be registered with

6426-538: The districts of Tripoli , Koura , Zgharta , Bsharri and parts of Batroun . The Canton was run by the Al-Marada's own civil administration of 80 public servants , who were also entrusted of running the militia's own television and radio service, "The Voice of the Marada" ( Arabic : عزة صوت المرادة | Iza'at Sawt al-Marada ) or "La Voix des Maradah" in French , by hijacking the television and radio signals emitted by

6528-759: The fall of the Palestinian refugee camp of Dbayeh in the hands of the Lebanese Front 's Christian militias earlier that same day. Deployed again to Beirut in March 1976, they assisted the hard-pressed Republican Guard battalion in the defense of the Presidential Palace in the Baabda District from a two-pronged combined PLO – LNM – Lebanese Arab Army (LAA) assault, though prior to the attack President Suleiman Frangieh had decamped to

6630-462: The fuel and sell it to black marketeers. Black marketing in vehicle/cooking fuel became widespread during the 2015 Nepal blockade ; even after it was eased and petrol imports resumed, people were not getting the fuel as intended, and resorted to the black market. In some countries including Saudi Arabia, Thailand, and India sex toys are illegal, and are sold illegally, without compliance with regulations on safety, etc. Platforms used to sell sex toys on

6732-436: The government or regulatory authority. Cash is the preferred medium of exchange in illegal transactions, since cash transactions are less easily traced. Common motives for operating in black markets are to trade contraband, avoid taxes and regulations, or evade price controls or rationing. Typically, the totality of such activity is referred to with the definite article, e.g., " the black market in bush meat". The black market

6834-575: The government-owned station at (location unknown), sending pirate broadcasts . Initially funded by Suleiman Frangieh's own personal fortune, the Al-Marada/ZLA also resorted to racketeering , with additional revenues being generated by the illegal ports of Chekka – Lebanon's industrial hub at the time – and Selaata , both located in the Batroun District , which were used for contraband of arms, agricultural goods and industrial products, drug-trafficking, and barratry . They also levied tolls on

6936-406: The hook can be pushed in and turned 90 degrees to the left or right, to fit under the user's forearm. This is to enable the shotgun to be fired with one hand; e.g. while abseiling/rappelling, or from a vehicle window while driving. The hook can be released from the buttplate completely by turning 180 degrees. SPAS-12 models feature two safeties: (i) a lever style or push button style safety, and (ii)

7038-732: The international black market or drawn from Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) reserves and Internal Security Forces (ISF) police stations. After June 1978, they were financed and armed mainly by Syria . Al-Marada/ZLA militiamen were provided with a variety of small-arms, including Lee-Enfield and MAS-36 bolt-action rifles , MAS-49 , M1 Garand (or its Italian-produced copy, the Beretta Model 1952 ), M14 and SKS semi-automatic rifles , plus MAT-49 and Heckler & Koch MP5 submachine guns . Assault rifles and carbines consisted of M16A1 , FN FAL , Heckler & Koch G3 , Vz. 58 , AK-47 and AKM assault rifles (other variants included

7140-457: The legal requirements or procedures—health checks, standards of accommodation, and so on. In other countries, such as Nicaragua , where legal prostitution is regulated, hotels may require both parties to identify themselves, to prevent child prostitution . Personally identifying information , financial information like credit card and bank account information, and medical data are bought and sold, mostly in darknet markets . People increase

7242-562: The local Sunni militias, but also at Zahlé with the local Greek-Catholic Zahliote Group (ZG) militia, despite the intervention of Lebanese Army troops in a vain attempt to curb the fighting. In October that year, ZLA militiamen were heavily committed in the Battle of the Hotels in Beirut, though later on 14 January 1976 they were rushed to defend Zgharta, which was besieged by PLO – Lebanese National Movement (LNM) forces in retaliation for

7344-468: The local police force and kept within a locked cabinet. Among those who may purchase weapons on the black market are people who are unable to pass the legal requirements for registration—convicted felons or those suffering from mental illness for example. The illegal logging of timber , according to Interpol , is an industry worth almost as much as the drug production industry in some countries. In many developing countries, living animals are captured in

7446-553: The months immediately after the Ehden killings, the Frangiehs were not only able to prevent the ZLA of being totally destroyed or absorbed into the Lebanese Forces, but also succeeded in ruthlessly driving the latter out of the Koura District by the end of the 1970s, kidnapping or slaughtering nearly 100 Phalange' members and forcing the remainder 25,000 either to flee the region or go underground. It has also been suspected that

7548-405: The more expensive SPAS-12 for departments throughout the United States. The LAW-12 model was notably lighter – 1.35 lb (0.61 kg) – than the SPAS-12 and still maintained the same tube capacity of 8+1 shells. LAW-12 gas pistons were designed as two pieces; unlike the one-piece design of the SPAS-12, they are not interchangeable. The LAW-12 was discontinued by Franchi shortly before the SPAS-12

7650-470: The now-bankrupt F.I.E Corp and began the re-importation of the Franchi SPAS-12 as the (Sporting Purpose Automatic Shotgun) under newly approved restrictions until 1994. The ATF allowed the importation of a SPAS-12 variant from American Arms because its size, weight, bulk and modified configuration were such that it was particularly suitable for traditional shooting sports. The SPAS-12 was tested by

7752-466: The official release of the title. A determined counterfeiter with a few hundred dollars can make copies that are digitally identical to an original with no loss in quality; innovations in consumer DVD and CD writers and the widespread availability of cracks on the Internet for most forms of copy protection technology make this cheap and easy to do. Copyright-holders and other proponents of copyright laws have found this phenomenon hard to stop through

7854-446: The particular institutional rules that they violate: The "illegal economy" consists of economic activities pursued in violation of legal statutes that define the scope of legitimate forms of commerce. Illegal-economy participants produce and distribute prohibited goods and services , such as drugs , weapons , and prostitution . The "unreported economy" circumvents or evades institutionally established fiscal rules as codified in

7956-495: The public at large. Additionally, not all people agree with copyright laws, on the grounds that they unfairly criminalize competition, allowing the copyright-holder to effectively monopolize related industries. Copyright-holders also may use region-coding to discriminate against selected populations price-wise and availability-wise. Copyright infringement law goes as far as to deem illegal " mixtapes " and other such material copied to tape or disk. Copyright holders typically attest

8058-488: The rate of exchange of its currency with that of other, "harder" currencies. When it does so, the peg may overvalue the local currency relative to what its market value would be if it were a floating currency . Those in possession of the harder currency, for example, expatriate workers, may be able to use the black market to buy the local currency at better exchange rates than they can get officially. In situations of financial instability and inflation, citizens may substitute

8160-475: The rear to reset the hammer and then reload the chamber. The later version installed a detent and machined hole in the trigger group frame to prevent an action lock; the detent would prevent the hammer from engaging when the trigger was depressed and would prevent an action lock from occurring. The quick employment safety, which is on the left side of the trigger guard, disconnects the trigger when put into safe mode. The quick employment safety can be disengaged with

8262-535: The region. This would bring about retaliation as the Lebanese Forces would respond with an attack on Ehden where Tony Frangieh commanded his militia from. After Tony Frangieh was killed in the Ehden massacre perpetrated by the Lebanese Forces (LF) in June 1978, he was replaced in the militia's command by his younger brother Robert Frangieh , later succeeded by his nephew Suleiman Frangieh Jr. in 1982. In

8364-453: The role of piracy in media distribution. The spread of material through file sharing is a source of publicity for artists and builds fan bases that may be inclined to see the performer live (live performances make up the bulk of successful artists' revenues, however not all artists can make live performances, for example, photographers typically only have a single source of income: the licensing of their photos). Money itself may be subject to

8466-598: The safety of Zouk Mikael , near Jounieh , and later to Kfour in the Keserwan District . Despite having joined in January 1976 the Lebanese Front alliance that gathered the main rightist Christian parties and their militias, the Frangiehs close ties to Syria (Suleiman was a personal friend of Syrian President Hafez al-Assad ), along with their bitter political squabbling with the Gemayel clan – leaders of

8568-551: The sidelines for the rest of the civil war, the Al-Marada/ZLA was able to remain active thanks to Syrian support and although its numbers dwindled to 1,600 fighters by the mid-1980s, the Al-Marada managed to hold on to the 'Northern Canton'. On July 11, 1984, the Al-Marada/ZLA clashed with the Syrian Social Nationalist Party (SSNP) militia forces for the control of the Christian villages of Kousba , Kfaraakka , Bsarma , Dahr-al-Ain and several others in

8670-666: The supply of prostitutes rose abruptly in Denver and Minneapolis in 2008 when the Democratic and Republican National Conventions took place there. Prostitutes in the black market generally operate with some degree of secrecy, sometimes negotiating prices and activities through codewords and subtle gestures. In countries such as Germany or the Netherlands , where prostitution is legal but regulated, illegal prostitutes exist whose services are offered more cheaply without regard for

8772-636: The synthetic hollow fixed stock and a six-shell capacity to comply with federal regulations for sporting purposes. Four different factory barrels were manufactured for the SPAS-12. The Franchi SPAS-12 came equipped with a non-adjustable circular aperture rear sight and a large, non-adjustable blade foresight integrated into the barrel. The LAW-12 was semi-automatic only and the SAS-12 was a pump-action only. These three "sister" shotguns accepted all SPAS-12 components, notably trigger groups, barrel threaded attachments and stocks. The various magazine extension tubes of

8874-424: The tax code. A summary measure of the unreported economy is the amount of income that should be reported to the tax authority but is not so reported. A complementary measure of the unreported economy is the " tax gap ": the difference between the amount of tax revenues due the fiscal authority and the amount of tax revenue actually collected. In the U.S. unreported income is estimated to be $ 2 trillion resulting in

8976-515: The taxes and the exchange rate between the Republic's euro (and previously punt ) and Northern Ireland's pound sterling ; indeed sometimes diesel will be smuggled in one direction and petrol the other. In some countries, diesel fuel for agricultural vehicles or domestic use is taxed at a much lower rate than that for other vehicles. This is known as dyed fuel , because a colored dye is added so it can be detected if used in other vehicles (e.g.

9078-493: The taxicab market with a medallion system (taxicabs must get a special license and display it on a medallion in the vehicle). In most such jurisdictions it is legal to sell the medallions, but the limited supply and resulting high prices of medallions have led to a market in unlicensed carpooling / illegal taxicab operation . In Baltimore , Maryland , for example, it is not uncommon for private individuals to provide illegal taxicab service for city residents. In places where there

9180-492: The transit trade of agricultural products and other goods at a number of in-land checkpoints, such as Madfoun in the Batroun District . The small ZLA entered the civil war only in July 1975, in response to a series of attacks in the Sunni Muslim -dominated northern port city of Tripoli on shops and offices owned by Christians from Zgharta by local Muslim militias. On 28 August 1975, the ZLA clashed again at Tripoli with

9282-432: The trigger finger when ready to fire and is intended for competition or tactical use. A third safety type, a pistol grip safety similar to the later-developed SPAS-15, is known to have been developed by Franchi for the SPAS-12, however, the pistol grip safety was not offered for sale to the general public. A B-Square rail mount for optics was available for a short time in the 1990s as an aftermarket accessory. The barrel of

9384-605: The underground market offers lower prices, consumers may still buy on the legal market when possible, because: However, in some situations, consumers may conclude that they are better off using black market services, particularly when government regulations hinder what would otherwise be a legitimate competitive service. For example, in Baltimore , many consumers actively prefer illegal taxi cabs, citing that they are more available, convenient, and fairly priced. Some examples of underground economic activities include: Prostitution

9486-432: The use of a top-mounted gas system, the gas block and the piston are annular, along with the piston spring they enclose the magazine tube. Once operated, the piston drives 2 symmetrical thin sprung operating rods located in the corners formed by the barrel and the magazine tube. As the rods push the bolt carrier rearward, it disengages the locking lug and drives the bolt rearward, allowing the system to cycle. The SPAS-12 has

9588-420: The value of the stolen data by aggregating it with publicly available data, and selling it again for a profit, increasing the damage that can be done to the people whose data was stolen. From the late 19th and early 20th centuries, many countries began to ban the possession or use of some recreational drugs , such as in the United States' war on drugs . Many people nonetheless continue to use illegal drugs, and

9690-467: The wild and sold as pets. Wild animals are also hunted and killed for their meat , hide, and organs, the latter of which and other animal parts are sold for use in traditional medicine. In several states in the United States , laws requiring the pasteurization of milk have created black markets in raw milk , and sometimes in raw milk cheese which is legal in a number of EU countries but banned in

9792-592: The world and strict limits on the amount of tobacco that can be imported duty-free from other countries, leading to widespread attempts to smuggle relatively cheap tobacco from low tax countries into the U.K. Such smuggling efforts range from vacationers concealing relatively small quantities of tobacco in their luggage to large-scale enterprises linked to organized crime . British authorities have aggressively tried to detect and confiscate such illegal imports, and to prosecute those caught. Nevertheless, it has been reported that "27% of cigarettes and 68% of roll your own tobacco

9894-536: Was also restricted by importation in 1989 and banned in 1994 with the Federal Assault Weapons Ban . The LAW-12 has a barrel length of 21 + 1 ⁄ 2  in (55 cm), a weight of 7 lb 4 oz (3.3 kg) and a capacity of 8 rounds in the magazine + 1 in the chamber. The model was known to have been imported with all stock styles used on the Franchi SPAS-12. The LAW-12 models were more common with police sales as an alternative to

9996-530: Was coined by the Employers' Association of Chicago in June 1927 in a statement about the influence of organized crime in the Teamsters union. Where taxicabs, buses, and other transportation providers are strictly regulated or monopolized by government, a black market typically flourishes to provide transportation to poorly served or overpriced communities. In the United States, some cities restrict entry to

10098-435: Was designed to function primarily in semi-automatic mode, with the pump-action mode used to reliably fire low-pressure ammunition such as tear gas rounds or less-lethal bean bags. The firing mode is switched by depressing the button under the fore-grip and also sliding it forwards or backwards until it clicks into position allowing the rotating sleeve to open or close the two gas ports. The semi-automatic mode functions with

10200-525: Was discontinued in 2000. In the United States, there were two importers of SPAS-12 shotguns. Importation of the SPAS-12 into the United States began in 1982 and ended in 1989 under F.I.E. Corp. In 1989, F.I.E. suffered from major losses in sales due to the president's importation ban, which was a reinterpretation of 18 U.S.C. 925(d)(3) that required firearms to have a "sporting purpose" in order to be imported. In 1990 American Arms incorporated purchased all remaining inventories of parts and SPAS-12 shotguns from

10302-412: Was estimated that 5% of all organ recipients engaged in commercial organ transplant in 2005. Research indicates that illegal organ trade is on the rise, with a recent report by Global Financial Integrity estimating that the illegal organ trade generates profits between $ 600 million and $ 1.2 billion per year across many countries. A racket is a service that is fraudulently offered to solve

10404-408: Was originally included with earlier model SPAS-12s. There are many known reproduction diverters. Four different stock styles exist. The first version of the SPAS-12 was manufactured with a wooden detachable stock and a standard grip. Later models included the folding metal stock with a hook. After the United States imposed import restrictions on the SPAS-12 in 1989, a version was released in 1990 with

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