Uziel "Uzi" Gal (Hebrew: עוזיאל『עוזי』גל, born Gotthard Glas; 15 December 1923 – 7 September 2002) was a German-born Israeli firearm designer who invented the Uzisubmachine gun.
In 1943, he was arrested for illegally carrying a gun and was sentenced to six years in prison. However, he was pardoned and released in 1946 (serving less than half of his sentence).[1]
Gal began designing the Uzi submachine gun shortly after the founding of Israel and the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. In 1951, it was officially adopted by the Israel Defense Forces and was called the Uzi after its creator. Gal did not want the weapon to be named after him but his request was denied. In 1955, he was decorated with the Tzalash haRamatkal and in 1958, Gal was the first person to receive the Israel Security Award, presented to him by Prime MinisterDavid Ben-Gurion for his work on the Uzi.
Gal retired from the IDF in 1975, and moved to the United States the following year. He settled in Philadelphia so that his daughter, Tamar, who had serious brain damage, could receive extended medical treatment there.
In the early 1980s, Gal assisted in the creation of the Ruger MP9 submachine gun.[2]
Gal also assisted film-actors like Linda Hamilton and Robert Patrick in their training to use automatic weapons in their movie roles.
Gal continued his work as a firearms designer in the United States until his death from cancer in 2002. His body was flown back to Yagur for burial.[3]
