Krav Maga Yashir Boston - Armed Assaults

Dealing With Weapon Attacks & Threats

Krav Maga is a comprehensive self-defense/fighting system that deals with armed as well as unarmed threats and attacks. There is a distinct difference between weapon threats and weapon attacks including knives, firearms and sticks/batons etc. In a threat a person will show/display a weapon in order to gain compliance e.g., they might present a weapon in order to threaten its use and gain compliance – a mugger engaging in a street robbery may demonstrate and illustrate the potential consequences of not handing over a wallet (or another asset such as a mobile phone or laptop etc.), by pressing a knife against your throat etc. The implication being that if you comply, they won’t harm you but if you don’t, they will etc. With weapon threats an aggressor may actually have no intention of using it, knowing that the threat alone is enough to get most people to acquiesce with their demand(s). In an armed attack/assault the weapon may remain hidden until it is used – to create an element of surprise – and the intention of its use is not gain compliance/acquiescence but to cause harm and injury e.g., somebody shanking you with a knife/blade has a few simple goals e.g., to cause you harm/pain and to reduce your ability to be a threat to them.

Of course, threats can turn into attacks e.g., a mugger with a knife who believes that you aren’t responding fast enough to their demand may decide to cut/slash you in order to speed up your response(s). Or it may be that during or after you have handed over your possessions/assets they feel/believe that because you got a good look at them, you can positively identify them to law enforcement, and decide to stab/kill you in order to reduce this risk etc. A predatory individual may have a “secondary motive” e.g., their primary goal was to commit a street robbery, but they now believe that the conditions are conducive for a rape/sexual assault etc. This is why when a mugger doesn’t adhere to the script that most street robberies follow – once goods/assets are handed over they leave – and instead stay, it is usually best/safer to enact a physical solution, than to work out what their next demand may be. It may be that this robbery is part of a gang initiation that sees you being shot or stabbed after being mugged etc.

Weapon threats are serious as they usually have a level and degree of premeditation to them; the very fact that an individual has a weapon on them, demonstrates that they carry in the belief that they may have to use it, either to acquire a goal and/or to protect themselves. It should also be recognized that there are those who carry a firearm and/or knife for protection, even if they haven’t thought of the scenarios and situations in which they may decide to pull their weapon. This is important to understand: an individual who carries a knife and/or firearm for protection may draw their weapon without understanding the threat level due to the degree of fear they are experiencing e.g., they may pull a firearm (they carry) during a verbal altercation in a parking lot over who was entitled to a particular space, because they feel threatened and/or frustrated. In a “cooler” moment they might recognize that this display of force is inappropriate but at the time with emotions running high they are not rationally evaluating things. This is why it is important in any social interaction to visually and verbally demonstrate that you are not a threat to the other person/party.

In an attack there is no opportunity to evaluate the threat/harm level or de-escalate etc. If a knife is coming towards you either as a slash or stab it needs to be dealt with as it is clear that your aggressor means you harm. Because action will beat reaction “techniques” alone will not protect you e.g., if you are caught by surprise and in-range it is very unlikely that you will be able to block and/or evade the attack. This is why at Krav Maga Yashir Boston, we place a heavy emphasis on situational awareness and early threat recognition so that you can put in place tactics that will increase your chances of being able to make your self-defense techniques work and be effective. Hopefully such awareness will allow you to predict, identify and avoid violence before it happens, but if not, it will at least give you the opportunity to put in place the things that are needed e.g., creating time and space, getting in a good position etc., to make your Krav Maga effective.

If you are interested in learning more about how to deal with both armed threats and attacks you can attend one of our beginners Krav Maga classes, located just north of Boston, by clicking the button below.

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