Apple replaces controversial pistol emoji with water gun

Apple has replaced its hand gun emoji with a green water pistol in the wake of growing concerns in the United States over continuing gun violence.

The gun swap came as the tech giant announced this week the release of over 100 new and redesigned emoji characters for the iOS 10, the new version of the operating system for iPhones and iPads, which is expected this fall.

The emoji update shows women doing stereotypically male jobs, including as a detective, police officer, and construction worker. It also includes new female athletes, a rainbow flag and family options for single parents.

In a statement, Apple said the update "brings more gender options to existing characters," but it did not directly address the replacement of the gun emoji.

Weapon emojis have landed people in trouble with the law. In 2015, a Brooklyn teenager was arrested for posting Facebook updates with gun emojis pointing to police emojis.

In France, a court sentenced a man to three months in prison for texting the pistol emoji to his ex-girlfriend after ruling the character could constitute a death threat.

With a plastic trigger, the new green and orange water gun emoji looks like a harmless toy and will replace the black and silver revolver.

The decision is not Apple's first foray into cartoon gun control. Unicode Consortium, the company which regulates and standardizes the emoji keyboard, nixed a proposed rifle emoji in June.

An organization called New Yorker Against Gun Violence started a campaign last year to get Apple to replace its version of the pistol emoji, urging the company to remove the firearm emoji "as a symbolic gesture to limit gun accessibility."

Gun violence has grown rampant in the United States in recent years. According to the group Mass Shooting Tracker, there have been more than 200 mass shooting incidents in the country so far this year. Endi