Context:
Celebratory gunfire and cries of "Allahu Akbar" or "God is Great" rang out across Tripoli as the reports spread. Cars honked their horns and people hugged each other. In Sirte, the ecstatic former rebels celebrated the city's fall after weeks of bloody siege by firing endless rounds into the sky, pumping their guns, knives and even a meat cleaver in the air and singing the national anthem.....
No, there's no expression "pumping knives." In this context, pumping means raising one's arm above one's head repeatedly.
In this video, between 14 seconds and 20 seconds, the people shown are " fist pumping," raising their fists in the air, up and down, to express their joy.