Assault Weapons Ban Dropped From US Gun Bill

A ban on assault weapons will not be included in the initial gun control measure the US Senate will debate next month, the bill's sponsor has said.

Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein, who championed the bill, says Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid told her the measure will instead be offered as an amendment.

The decision means the ban seems to stand little chance of surviving because of expected opposition from Republicans and likely defections from some moderate Democrats.

Sen Reid said fewer than 40 of his chamber's 100 members support the White House-backed bill.

Sen Feinstein previously managed to get an assault weapons ban through Congress in 1994, but the law was allowed to expire in 2004.

Her recent push to reinstall the ban comes in the wake of the school shooting massacre in Newtown, Connecticut, where 20 children and six teachers were killed in December.

Several of the victims' relatives have called on Congress to approve increased gun control.

Sen Feinstein's latest measure specifically bans 157 firearms but excludes 2,258 others in an effort to avoid barring hunting and sporting weapons. It also calls for a ban on ammunition magazines that carry more than 10 rounds.

The ban was one of four gun control measures approved this month by the Senate Judiciary Committee.

The others would expand required federal background checks for firearms buyers, increase federal penalties for illegal gun trafficking and boost school safety money.