Miko Peled, an Israeli writer and activist speaks on his book, The General's Son: Journey of an Israeli in Palestine, a look at the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from a national and personal perspective.
This is a talk he gave at Portland State University earlier this year.
On his blog, Peled writes:
In my book, “The General’s Son, Journey of an Israeli in Palestine” I show how it is that the son of an Israeli General and a staunch Zionist came to these realizations. Realizing that your side of the story is not the only side to the story, and then accepting rather than fighting this realization and in the end finding that the story upon which I was raised, was a lie – now that is an interesting journey.
The following is an edited version of something was written by a friend, Iris Keltz, from Taos New Mexico who heard me speak:
“The General’s Son”
“Miko Peled is a peace activist who dares to say in public what others still choose to deny. He has credibility, so when he debunks myths that Jews around the world hold with blind loyalty, people listen. Miko was born in Jerusalem in 1961 into a well known Zionist family. His grandfather, Dr. Avraham Katsnelson was a Zionist leader and signer on the Israeli Declaration of Independence. His father, Matti Peled was a young officer in the war of 1948 and a general in the war of 1967 when Israel conquered the West Bank, Gaza, Golan Heights and the Sinai.
Miko’s unlikely opinions reflect his father’s legacy. General Peled was a war hero turned peacemaker. The general clearly stated that contrary to claims made later, the 1967 war was one of choice, and not because there was no existential threat to the state of Israel. He then dedicated his life to the achievement of Israeli Palestinian peace.
- KBOO