PUTIN'S TINY ARMY
Some parents would gasp at the thought of their children playing with a toy gun, but these Russian children are actually encouraged to take up real arms. Military sports club, ‘Berkut’, (meaning golden eagle), trains up tiny Vlads and Boris’, who dream of joining the elite units of the Russian army and fighting under the command of President Vladimir Putin. Pictured on their website brandishing a hand gun, is a young boy, dressed in military fatigues with his finger over the trigger. Children as young a five are sent on forced marches, given battlefield training, taught hand to hand combat, and how to use military equipment. 12 year olds are also taught to fire Kalashnikov assault rifles and other small arms. During the clubs regular camps some children are given the opportunity to parachute jump during their paratrooper training. The club based in Zhukovsky, Russia, claims to provide military training designed to develop the younger generation of the “motherland” - a term synonymous with the former Soviet Union and the communist rule of the last century.
Other great stories
FORGETFUL PARENT’S LIVING TIMEKEEPER
FOR TWO memory-impaired parents their new-born baby Cian is a living timekeeper .
LEAPING WOOD MOUSE
LEAPING through the air this determined little mouse is on a mission for food .
MICK JAGGER'S LUXURY GLASTO YURT
FEAST your eyes onthe £3K luxury yurts that rock legend Mick Jagger will be basking in between Glastonbury performances this weekend .
NINJA RED SQUIRREL
A NINJA red squirrel cuts a dashing figure as the little fella jumps up to ten-feet between treetops in the Yorkshire Dales .
FINE CHINA GOLD LINED DOG BOWLS SELL AT £1,500
Posh pooch owners are lapping their pets up in luxury by paying £1,500 for 22ct gold lined fine china DOG BOWLS .
PARTNERS IN GRIME
MASKED intruders look sinister but really they are a gang of urban exploring pranksters .
ABANDONED WILD WEST THEME PARK
The gunslingers are long gone and tumbleweeds have taken over at this abandoned American Wild West Theme Park in Cornwall .
BRAVE DIVER FEEDS SHARKS DEADLY FISH
A diver attempts to control rising numbers of lionfish by feeding the venomous species to Caribbean reef sharks .
DOTING SEAL TICKLES HER PUP
A doting seal smiles at her sweet little pup as she tickles its tummy on the beach .
36 YEAR AGE GAP COUPLE MISTAKEN FOR DAD AND DAUGHTER
A couple from Bristol have told that they are often mistaken for father and daughter because of their huge 36 year age gap .
STUNNING CONTRAST OF ENGLISH SETTINGS
CONTRASTING settings reveal some of England’s most beautiful landscapes in all their glory .
WHEELCHAIR BASEJUMPER
THROWING himself off 1,100ft bridges in a wheelchair, this is the PARALYSED base jumper who knows no fear .