Yea... I used to carry M-16 and Galil assault rifles for long 3 years of my military service in Israel Defense Forces. Actually all those pictures of guys with sub-machine guns are of soldiers in leave. Once you are mobilized, you do not give up arms during vacations.
Regarding guns for civilian population, it's for sale only to certain population groups: settlers, owners of small businesses and several more. You kind of should justify why you need a gun for self-defense.