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WASHINGTON - The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) said Saturday that it received more than 200,000 background check requests for gun purchases on Black Friday, setting a new single day record.

FBI Washington Field office building is seen in Washington, US, November 6, 2017.[Photo/Agencies]

The FBI said its National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) fielded 203,086 requests on Black Friday, up from the previous single-day highs of 185,713 last year and 185,345 in 2015, both previous records set on Black Fridays.

Gun checks, required for purchases at federally licensed firearm dealers, were not a measure of actual gun sales. The number of firearms sold Friday was likely higher because multiple firearms can be included in one transaction by a single buyer, according to a USA Today news report.

The rush of demand came when U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions ordered, prior to the Thanksgiving Day, a sweeping review of the country's background check system, under which a court-martialed Air Force veteran purchased a rifle and used it to kill 25 people on Nov. 5 in a church in Sutherland Springs, Texas.

Following the shooting, the Air Force admitted it had not provided the FBI with details of the court martial, which would have blocked the sale of the rifle.

The NICS processed a record 27.5 million background checks across the United States in 2016.