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Learned Responses
BY MOSHE KATZ
CEO
ISRAELI KRAV INTERNATIONAL
August 17, 2025, Israel (and South Africa)
This short blog is coming directly from our Krav Maga Online Distance program, this is a description of our defense vs the Panga machete attack. I felt there were some usefull concepts here worth sharing via the written word, our blog.
I am always learning. A few years back I was asked about the defense vs a "Garden Fork", I had never heard this term before, it is something smaller than a pitch fork, it is a gardening tool used in South Africa, and sadly, also used there as a deadly weapon.
As a result of that question, and the many follow-up questions, we produced an entire series on that topic, I hope the South African members of IKI were happy but the I know others around the world were scratching their heads wondering why I was devoting so much time to this somewhat rare and exotic attack (that is rare outside of South Africa)
If you would like to see that series, just let me know and I will send it to you.
With IKI we are very international, that means we will often address issues that might not be relevant to all our members, but always useful to know. We have videos on school fights, but you might be no longer a teenager or a school teacher. We have videos that are more relevant to security professionals, and that is not relevant for many others. In Slovakia they were interested in defending against the Gypsy attack, while in my town we have never seen a Gypsy.
During this past trip I was asked about the Panga attack, but I had never heard of a Panga, turns out it is a sort of machete, often called the Panga Machete, perhaps a little bit shorter than a standard machete and curled at the end, I have attached a photo.
Apparently in South Africa this is an unfortunately common attack. While I was in South Africa one of our instructors told of an incident where a woman had ....let's just say been badly attacked, I will spare you the gory details, (I saw the photograph, a Day in the Life) but they were very gruesome. We must learn how to deal with this attack.
I am told that the attack happens much like the knife attack to the stomach, i.e. the Knife Thrust to the belly. The difference, however, is that the Panga is much longer than the knife, therefore our usual defense, the "Windmill downward block" would most likely not strike the attacker's forearm. We must be careful that we do not strike the blade with out forearm as that would be very damaging to us.
Now what can we do? First, prioritize, what is important here? Choice A- a disarm, Choice B - Stay alive.
We can forget about the disarm, all we want is to survive.
There was a suggestion to do a sort of side move, what is known in karate as Tai Sabaki, i.e. as the attack comes in, we quickly step to the side at an angle, and then counterattack etc.
I spent years working on this Tai Sabaki move when I trained in Shurin Ryu Karate, Isshin Ryu Karate, Shotokan karate and Oyama Kyokushin karate. And, having all that experience, I have decided never to try and use this move in a real-life violent encounter. I believe strongly that it will not work, and furthermore, that is irrelevant, as I believe that under the stress of a real-life violent attack with such a long and deadly weapon, we will not have the presence of mind to pull off that move. Simply put, it is not a natural instinctive movement. Therefore, it requires a thought process that will not happen in the context of a surprise sudden attack, that is my opinion. I will not try to do the Tai Sabaki under these circumstances.
So what can we do?
We need to do a move that is natural, instinctive and ...one that is Triggered by the attack. What do I mean by this?
We must understand the context, the circumstances, this is not an MMA match, this is not a dojo contest where we bow to each other and the Sensei shouts, Hajime! (begin). Nothing of the sort. This is terror, surprise, panic. Most martial arts involved "Learned Responses" , we learn a technique, we practice and we try to use it in the moment of truth, that is not easy, and usually impossible. What we want is a technique, an action, that not only is not hindered by the Fear and shock, but on the contrary, TRIGGERED by it. i.e. You will perform the defense Better on the street that you would in the dojo. In the dojo your thinking will slow you down, but on the street you are relax, and then caught by a sudden surprise, bang! you react, you jump, that is our defense. The relaxed, unsuspecting state of mind, with proper training, will actually work to our benefit. The lack of tension will facilitate a faster response, IF we have trained ourselves. I.e. this is a very natural response but we still need to work on it, to develop it, to make it a "tool", and then as Bruce Lee said, "At the correct moment, your tools will respond".
In other words, it is the Same defense as with the Knife Thrust to the Belly, only here we will not be striking at his forearm, we are just doing the "Shuffle backwards move". In some cases I might end up slapping his wrist, pushing down on his hand, as happened accidently in this video, filmed in South Africa, or, I might miss it entirely.
It does not matter at all if I actually make contact with his hand. The slap on the wrist does not matter, I am not attempting any disarm, I just want to get away with all my fingers.
So this is a rather long philosophical, psychological explanation to a very short and simple defense. As Rob said to me in South Africa, the technique is easy, that is not the issue, the issue is overcoming the Obstacle of the circumstances, being able to access your techniques, your tools, real-time, when you need them.
Moshe Katz, 7th dan Black Belt, Israeli Krav Maga. Certified by Wingate Institute. Member Black Belt hall of fame, USA and Europe.
Understand the Israeli Fighting Mentality - Israel a Nation of Warriors by Moshe Katz
What is the cultural background of Krav Maga? What makes it unique? What makes the Israeli military so effective? Why are Israeli security systems used all over the world?
What are the Biblical origins of Krav Maga and who was the first Krav Maga instructor?
What weapons and military strategies did our Biblical ancestors use?
How has Krav Maga developed in Israel and what are its goals?
All that and more in this unique book.
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