Apple persuaded the Unicode Consortium, a panel that approves emojis across platforms, to disarm a forthcoming set of 72 emojis by removing a rifle pictograph, according to
ABC News.
Apple is joined on the Unicode Consortium by its main competitors in the mobile market, Microsoft and Google.
According to Buzzfeed, Apple's representatives objected to a rifle emoji on its Mac and iOS platforms, and requested that it be dropped. Microsoft also voiced concern about a rifle image.
The rifle was part of an Olympics themed set, specifically to represent half of the biathlon, which includes target shooting.
Despite Apple's concern over the rifle, other weapon emojis are available on their devices; including a pistol, several different knives and swords, and a bomb.