Culture Club

Miko Peled (born 1961 in Jerusalem) is an Israeli peace activist, author, and karate instructor. He has written one book, The General’s Son: Journey of an Israeli in Palestine,[1] and he has travelled extensively, giving talks about his experiences to audiences across the US, the UK, Canada, and Australia.

Born and raised in Jerusalem in 1961, Peled grew up in a prominent Zionist family; his grandfather, Avraham Katsnelson, signed Israel’s Declaration of Independence.[2] His father, Mattityahu Peled, fought in the 1948 war, and served as a general in the war of 1967; later, after the Israeli cabinet ignored his investigation of a 1967 alleged Israeli war crime, he became a peace activist and leading proponent of an Israeli dialogue with the PLO. He condemned the Israeli military for seizing the West Bank, Gaza, Sinai and the Golan Heights, calling the war a "cynical campaign of territorial expansion".[3] He was marginalized and shunned for his activism, and call for a two-state solution. Palestinian activist Susan Abulhawa has described Peled's father, who died in 1995, as "a man that many of us Palestinians could not figure out whether to love or hate" and whom "many notable Palestinians" nicknamed "Abu Salam" (Father of Peace).[4]

Miko Peled followed his father’s footsteps at first, joining Israel’s Special Forces after high school and earning the red beret, but he soon grew to regret his decision. He surrendered his status as soon as he earned it, becoming a medic, and finally, disgusted by the 1982 Lebanon invasion, he buried his service pin in the dirt.[5]

He then distanced himself from activism until 1997, becoming a sixth-degree black belt in karate and moving first to Japan, then to San Diego, California, USA.[6] For a time he was involved in activism. One evening in 1983, however, he skipped a Peace Now demonstration in Jerusalem to attend karate class, and on that evening a grenade attack by a right-wing extremist killed one of the demonstrators. "Peled took this as a sign," according to one interview, and consequently "followed the path of karate – a practice of non-violence...that teaches one to 'overcome insurmountable obstacles.'" This path "that took him to Japan and eventually to San Diego, where he settled with his wife and family"[7] and worked as a karate instructor.