Martin Guptill became the first man to score a double hundred in a Cricket World Cup knockout match and propelled co-hosts New Zealand into the semi-finals as they claimed a 143-run win against West Indies. The 28-year-old batsman was dropped in the first over before going on to score 237 from 163 balls - including 24 fours and 11 sixes, one of which found the roof of Wellington's Westpac Stadium in the final over. The record-breaking innings, which was the second highest one day international score of all time behind Indian Rohit Sharma's 264, helped New Zealand to 393 for six. VIDEO Scroll down to watch Martin Guptill record highest-ever World Cup score of 237 . Martin Guptill's double century helped New Zealand beat the West Indies and reach the World Cup semis . Guptill becomes the first man to hit a double century in a World Cup knockout match . The Kiwi opener watches after hitting a massive six - one of 11 he struck during his innings of 237 . The West Indies' Jerome Taylor congratulates Guptill on his achievement at the end of the innings . Chris Gayle of the West Indies also added his congratulations after the history-making innings . In reply, West Indies were all out for 250 in 30.3 overs, with Trent Boult claiming four for 44 to become the leading wicket taker in the tournament. New Zealand will face South Africa in the semi-finals while Australia play India in the other match. It could have been so different, though, had Marlon Samuels held a the catch just three balls in which would have sent Guptill back to the pavilion. Guptill also survived two lbw shouts, but New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum had less luck at the other end as he fell for 12 runs. Kane Williamson had put on 33 before falling to Andre Russell, whose wide delivery ended up with Chris Gayle at short cover. Meanwhile Guptill was moving towards his half-century and reached it with a single from the last ball of the 20th over to put New Zealand on 105 for two. His ton had been put together with a steady succession of fours but his first six arrived in the 36th over as he carted Darren Sammy to wide long-on. Guptill was perhaps guilty of ball-watching when Ross Taylor was run out for 42 but, despite the fact the mistake would likely be overlooked due to his heroics, he made sure to atone for it by reaching his second 150 in ODIs with a single off Sulieman Benn. Corey Anderson was then caught by an off-pace delivery from Russell, shuffling across to pull the ball across to Gayle at midwicket for 15. Guptill's double-ton was within reach and he wasted no time gunning for it, achieving his personal best of 192 with a four off Russell before partner Grant Elliott was dismissed on review. Guptill ignored that disappointment to fire a four that brought him to 199, going on to drill Russell's first delivery of the 48th over to long-off for a four that made World Cup history. New Zealand celebrate after dismissing the Windies opener Chris Gayle for 61 runs . Darren Sammy gestures after falling over while batting during his innings of 27 . Trent Boult acrobatically fields off his own bowling as New Zealand bowled their opponents out for 250 . A swing and a miss for Andre Russell as Southee bowls him for 20 runs . The dismissal of Russell left the West Indies on 201-8, well shy of their target of 394 . Tim Southee reacts after dismissing Russell as the West Indies resistance crumbled in Wellington . Corey Anderson is congratulated by team-mate Brendon McCullum after taking the wicket of Darren Samm . Tuesday March 24 . New Zealand vs South Africa (Auckland) 1am . Thursday March 26 . Australia vs India (Sydney) 3.30am . Luke Ronchi departed for nine but Guptill held firm hitting a six which ended up on the roof of the stadium in the final over to wrap up his stunning innings. In reply, the West Indies stuttered, with Johnson Charles out for three in the second over before Lendl Simmons departed for 12 as they rocked on 27 for two. New Zealand's Ross Taylor dives to make a single during his innings of 42 . West Indies celebrate after Denesh Ramdin ran out Taylor to temporarily check New Zealand's momentum . Corey Anderson plays a shot - he made 15 runs before being caught by Chris Gayle off the bowling of Russell . Luke Ronchi shakes the hand of Martin Guptill after the opener reached his double century . Corey Anderson plays a shot as New Zealand race towards a massive total of 393 in the quarter-final . Trent Boult celebrates after bowling West Indies opener Johnson Charles for three runs . The West Indies bowler Andre Russell steams in during the quarter-final at the Westpac Stadium . Trent Boult celebrates with clenched fists after removing Denesh Ramdin for a duck . Samuels (27) applied a steadying hand with the free-hitting Gayle (61), but when the former was caught brilliantly by Daniel Vettori with a one-handed catch on the boundary, wickets again started to fall at regular intervals. Denesh Ramdin was the next man put, lbw by Boult for a duck before Gayle was clean bowled by Adam Milne. Sammy hung around for 16 balls for his 27 but after he and Jonathan Carter (32) were dismissed, West Indies were left hanging in on 173 for seven. Russell (20) and Jerome Taylor (11) put up little resistance with Jason Holder the last man out for 42.

Hosts booked their place in the semi-final and will play South Africa next . New Zealand posted a mammoth total of 393 in Wellington . Martin Guptill became first man to score double hundred in knockout game at the Cricket World Cup, ending on 237 from 163 balls . But the Kiwi opener was dropped by Marlon Samuels third ball . Chris Gayle scored 61 but the West Indies could only make 250 .

-old became just the second New Zealander to score a double hundred in one-day internationals, […]
Category: Cricket
Cricket News
India v West Indies 3rd T20 India Win 3-0
Yuvraj Singh announced his retirement from all forms of cricket after India’s 3-0 clean sweep in the three-match Twenty20 series against the West Indies here on Saturday. The 34-year-old, who has played 304 matches in all forms of the game, quit after being diagnosed with cancer at the start of this year. “With immense […]
Indian Women’s Team Out To Prove Mithali’s Predictions Were A Dream
While the Indian men’s team is on a roll in the Twenty20 league, the women will face their toughest assignment, the four-nation Champions League Twenty20 which gets underway on Monday. The women’s team, fresh from defeating England in their last match, will have tough going against their more experienced opponents — Australia and South Africa […]
Wales, England in the frame for Cricket World Cup 2019
The ICC’s Cricket World Cup 2019 will be held in the UK in the summer of 2019, it was announced at a meeting of the game’s governing body in Dubai. The tournament is the second to be hosted by England, after the 1975 edition. The hosts and four other teams — Pakistan, New Zealand, Bangladesh […]
T20 Series, India vs West Indies
Virender Sehwag on Friday lauded the West Indies as the best team in the shortest format of the game, a reason for India’s struggles in the T20 format. India was thrashed by the Windies on a difficult and belting batting strip by eight wickets in the third T20. This means that India will face the […]
Rohit Sharma: India are ‘very confident’ about this World Cup
The Indian squad has begun their three-city promotional blitzkrieg in New Delhi, Ahmedabad and Nagpur ahead of the World Cup. Captain Virat Kohli made it known that the side would start its title defence in England on June 1. “There are some things you can’t control,” said Rohit Sharma, one of the star batsmen in […]
India set target of 300 runs against West Indies
Virat Kohli (left) and Rohit Sharma


Nicola Sturgeon yesterday vowed to work with Labour to ‘lock the Tories out’ of power. In an extraordinary speech in London, Scotland’s first minister claimed voters across the UK would welcome her party’s influence at Westminster, saying she would end austerity. But, following mounting pressure from senior colleagues, Ed Miliband last night tried to draw a line under speculation about a Labour-SNP government by ruling out a formal coalition. Labour leader Ed Miliband said a formal coalition with the SNP 'will not happen' - but failed to rule out forming a looser alliance on a vote-by-vote basis . The Labour leader said there would be ‘no SNP ministers’ in any government he leads after May’s general election. But Mr Miliband pointedly refused to rule out a deal that would see the resurgent Scottish nationalists prop up a minority Labour government in key Commons votes – the preferred option of Miss Sturgeon. ‘This was a lot of hype to rule out something no one was proposing,’ the first minister said. ‘Mr Miliband’s statement is absolutely fine from our point of view, because formal coalition with seats in the UK government has never been our preference. ‘But working with Labour in a looser arrangement, I certainly wouldn’t rule out because I want to see SNP MPs in the House of Commons pushing for progressive change. I also don’t want to see David Cameron re-elected. 'As long as there are more SNP and Labour MPs than there are Tory MPs, we can lock the Tories out of government, there is no question about that.’ Pollsters suggest the SNP is on course for an unprecedented breakthrough at the general election, winning dozens of Labour seats and depriving Mr Miliband of any chance of a majority. John Curtice, of Strathclyde University and one of the country’s leading election experts, said the SNP appeared on the brink of winning 45 of Scotland’s 59 seats. Ms Sturgeon, appearing on ITV's Lorraine show, claimed that if Labour ruled out a deal with the SNP they would be saying they were happy to see David Cameron 'waltz back in to Number 10' ‘That means the formation of any government after May 7 will be with the acquiescence of the SNP,’ the professor added. ‘Mr Miliband’s chances may indeed depend on him coming to some arrangement with the SNP.’ Electoral deals between two or more parties can take various guises. A full-scale coalition is a power-sharing deal of the kind struck by David Cameron and Nick Clegg, with a shared programme and ministers from different parties. One step down from a coalition is an arrangement called ‘confidence and supply’. In exchange for concessions to its interests, a smaller party agrees to back a larger one in key Commons votes. A still looser arrangement is possible, whereby a minority Labour government would negotiate with the SNP to win its backing on every major vote. William Hague, the Leader of the Commons, said an issue-by-issue deal between Labour and the SNP would be ‘even worse’. ‘Every day the SNP could come back with more demands,’ said the Tory MP. Miss Sturgeon, speaking at the London School of Economics, set out a shopping list of demands for a deal with Labour, including £180billion of extra borrowing, ditching the Trident nuclear deterrent, and billions more in benefits for the working poor. She said the SNP would ensure that any government it supports offered an ‘alternative to austerity’. In the past, the SNP imposed a ‘self-denying ordinance’ on its MPs which prevented them from voting on most ‘English-only’ issues at Westminster. But, with the possibility of a power-sharing deal in sight, this principle has been ditched. Miss Sturgeon yesterday said SNP MPs were entitled to dictate policy at Westminster in return for their votes. ‘We have clear and constructive views on many aspects of UK policy which affect Scotland deeply – views which we know are often shared by many people elsewhere in the UK. And we intend to bring those ideas forward in a positive spirit,’ she said. She insisted that voters in England could trust her not to use a hung parliament as part of a plan to make another attempt to break up the country. Last night an ICM poll for the Guardian revealed 43 per cent of voters are worried about the SNP determining who runs the UK. Labour leader in Scotland Jim Murphy (left) said the party would not make any 'backroom deals' with the SNP .

SNP chief said she would vote Green in England and Plaid Cymru in Wales . But she called for deal with Labour after the election to keep the Tories out . Ms Sturgeon she she would impose left-wing policies across the UK . She said the SNP wanted to do more than just serve Scotland's interests .

 that the SNP had a “mandate” to be in power.
At the height of her ambitions for the party, she said it would be a “tragedy” if the Tories were re-elected on December 12.
She also attacked Boris Johnson, who she said had “betrayed” the Leave campaign’s promises in the Brexit deal.
Mrs Sturgeon said the prime minister “betrayed” the electorate in December 2016 when he promised that the UK would leave the EU on October 31 “deal or no deal”.
She said he promised the electorate “great trade deals all round” and the creation of a “new sovereign fishing policy” – which she said was “all a fantasy”.
The SNP leader also vowed to give a “direct mandate” to her supporters to call another independence referendum in 2021.
And she claimed Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer could not be trusted in the event of a new vote because she said he would support the will of the people if it went against Brexit.
The SNP leader said: “My conclusion is that the United Kingdom is best governed with a Scottish voice at Westminster.
.”
Mrs Sturgeon said: “The UK and the European Union have agreed what is called the future relationship.
“It says Britain will no longer be a member of the European Union but will continue to follow much of the common legal regime.
“It guarantees the future free movement of people.
“It guarantees access to the single market.
“It guarantees a common regulatory framework.
“That is the only agreement that has been reached by the United Kingdom and the European Union.
“The agreement is the only framework and basis for a future economic relationship.
“And yet, at this very moment we are seeing the Government of the United Kingdom, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, the Secretary of State for Scotland and the chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster coming under pressure from the most ardent Brexiters to tear up that future relationship and create instead a new deal with the European Union.”
Mrs Sturgeon warned voters to prepare themselves for “a summer of Brexit chaos” once Mr Johnson triggers the Article 50 mechanism.
She said the prime minister was taking the UK into a “half-in/half-out” position with no “real clarity” on what kind of economic partnership Britain wanted to pursue with


Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran have reached the point of no return. The two Australians are making their final journeys from the Bali prison where they have been incarcerated for 10 years to a sinister island they have only heard about called Nusakambangan. There, a firing squad awaits. The grim news that there is now no hope of escaping their fates hangs heavily over the family and friends of the two men. For Chan, 31, and Sukumaran, 34, leaving the Balinese prison which has been their home for the last 10 years brings only fear and dread. Scroll down for video . Myuran Sukumaran is escorted on to a flight, en route to Nusakambangan, on Wednesday . A handcuffed Andrew Chan is led up the steps and on to the flight out of Bali to Death Island . Prison home: Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran have been escorted out of Kerobokan prison in Bali, their home for 10 years, and have begun their finals journey, to Nusakambangan, aka Death Island . Growing up inside: Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, aged about 22 and 25 years old in 2006 (left), and the men almost a decade later (right) pictured inside Kerobokan jail this week as they awaited the news about their departure from Bali for central Java where they will be executed . Chan and Sukumaran are driven out of of Kerobokan on Wednesday in an armoured vehicle. The streets were lined with police and riot officers . The ringleaders of the Bali Nine heroin drug ring were given a Hindu blessing ceremony at Kerobokan prison and said their farewells. Neither man has been outside the walls of Kerobokan since shortly after their arrest on April 17, 2005, when Chan, then a 21-year-old, was seated on a Qantas flight which was ready to depart Ngurah Rai airport. He was not carrying any drugs. Sukumaran only enjoyed a few more hours of freedom, his arrest coming later on the same day at the Melasti Beach Bungalows in Kuta Beach along with Bali Nine mules Si Yi Chen, Tan Duc Than Nguyen and Matthew Norman, who had 11.8 ounces of heroin strapped to their bodies. A set of scales were also in the room. One way trip: The two condemned men will fly to Tunggul Wulung airport in the central Javanese town of Cilacap 700km from  Denpasar airport which they have not seen for the ten years since the Bali Nine were arrested with 8.3kg of heroin in a doomed attempt to smuggle the drugs from Indonesia back to Australia . The 'bandara' or airport (pictured) in the coastal mining town of Cilacap in central java, which is the port for Nusakambangan Island and where two Indonesian military planes carrying Australians Chan and Sukumaran and an escort of armed police will  land today . Shattered: A devastated Raji Sukumaran (above, right) leaves Kerobokan prison earlier this week after visiting her 34-year-old son Myuran as hopes faded for legal appeals to prevent him and Andrew Chan being executed by firing squad . Michael Chan, the older brother of death row inmate Andrew Chan is pictured leaving Kerobokan prison in the Balinese capital of Denapasar this week ahead of his brother's transfer to the central Javaneseport of Cilacap for execution on 'death island' All men plus the remaining mules apprehended at the airport with heroin strapped to their bodies were interrogated and taken into custody at the Bali police headquarters before being transferred to Kerobokan. Chan and Sukumaran left the prison never to return, escorted by 22 heavily armed men dressed in black, the members of the Brimob  special police mobile brigade. Handcuffed and walked by figures with their faces hidden by masks and balaclavas, the pair were placed into armoured personnel carriers, called Barracuda or Wolf, and driven on the 30 minute trip to Ngurah Rai airport. Unlikely to have got the chance to see the makeover the airport terminal has undergone since they flew into Bali in 2005, the men were driven across the tarmac to a small prop plane. They are being escorted every step of the way by the Brimob officers. After takeoff Chan and Sukumaran got their last glimpse of Denpasar and Kerobokan prison before the aircraft turned west on its 700km journey. The flight, expected to take two hours, took them over the mountainous terrain of eastern Java, with its volcanoes and verdant highlands, then down to the coast and tiny rundown Tunggul Wulung Airport in Cilacap, which normally opens only between 7am and 2pm and services mostly flight schools. Muslim territory: This is the port of the coastal town of Cilacap in central Java which, in contrast to the Hindu culture of Bali, is Muslim and broadcasts on loudspeakers the five daily calls to prayer . Prison officers share a joke outside a shop at Wijaya Pura port in Cilacap as preparations took place for the executions of Australians Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran at nearby Nuskambangan island . From the air strip to Wijaya Pura, the quay to Cilacap's port, it is a 16km drive through a sprawling industrial city, but the Indonesian police are expected to transfer the Australians to Nusakambangan in another armoured vehicle. Although the Australians will miss the bustle of Cilacap's streets, which are choked with trucks and hundreds of noisy motorbikes, their transfer into a different culture will become obvious when they hear their first Islamic call to prayer broadcast on loudspeakers. A police vehicle drives onto the deck of the Pengayoman II, one of the police boats which ferry prisoners, prison guards and family members to Nusakambangan's seven island prisons . The police station on Nusakambangan Island where Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran are due to be taken on Wednesday 72 hours ahead of their executions this coming weekend . Death island: Nusakambangan island, as seen on this map, lies off the southern coast of central Java, and has been a prison island since the early 1900s with several abandoned facilities among its rubber plantations and rain forest and seven operational jails including Batu, to where Chan and Sukumaran are being transferred . This jetty on Nusakambangan Island where the  Australians' families will be taken to so they can visit before the two men face the firing squad, most likely just after midnight on Saturday . One of the towers on Nusakmabnagan Island, which is now the point of no return for condemned Australian drug smugglers, Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran . Densely overgrown with tropical rainforest, Nusakambangan is 121 square kilometres and its seven operating prisons cannot be seen from the shore opposite. They will then be taken to Batu or 'stone' prison, one of the island's seven facilities, where prison officers have been preparing special isolation cells to separate Chan and Sukumaran and others due for execution from the remainder of the prison population. Family members will have to take the police boat to Nusakambangan to visit them. The journey takes around 30 minutes and ends at Sodong dock. Indonesian military patrol the waters off Nusakambangan island in the security build up in the days leading up to the execution of up to ten drug traffickers, including the Australians, a Filipino woman and men from France, Nigeria and Ghana . The steps leading up from the jetty at Sodong dock on Nuskambangan island, where the two Australians are due to be taken to today, arriving from Cilacap . The entrance to Nuskambangan's Pasir Putih prison, the supermax facility on Nusakambangan or 'death' island which lies off central Java in Indonesia . This is the interior of Batu prison, where Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran will be housed is isolation cells ahead of their executions just after midnight on Saturday night . An inmate is pictured in Batu prison on Nusakambangan, one of the older facilities built during Dutch colonial times, and which will house the two Australians for 72 hours before they face a firing squad . This recreation of the firing squad aired on Indonesian television in January just before the execution on Nusklambangan of foreign drug traffickers. 'Eksekusi mati' means death by execution in the Bahasa Indonesian language . This eerie hooded figure, featuring in a TV recreation,  is meant to represent the condemned prisoner who has the choice of wearing a blindfold while being executed by firing squad in Indonesia . They will then be allowed visits from their families and  a minister of religion of their choosing as they are given 72 hours to live before they face the firing squad. They will also be asked to make a written final request, which may be in the form of making a statement about their guilt or innocence. They will also be allowed to choose whether they are strapped to the execution post when they face the firing squad and whether they wish to be blindfolded or not. Over on the mainland in Cilacap, Chan and Sukumaran's relatives will be staying in hotels and accompanied throughout the town by Australian embassy staff from Jakarta or Denpasar. Ambulances take the bodies of executed prisoners from 'death island' to the mainland . An ambulance with the body of  executed prisoner, Dutchman Ang Kiem Soei, at Cilacap in January arrives off the police boat from Nusakambangan island in central Java to thedock of Wjaya Pura port . Meanwhile, preparations for the executions are gathering apace, with ambulances due at the Java Christian Church on Friday, where they will be marked in alphabetical order, A to J, for the ten prisoners due for execution and labelled with the condemned person's names. The ambulances will be loaded each with a coffin and taken to the island. At 10pm on Saturday, Cilacap mortician Suhendro Putra will board the police boat with the coffins and be ferried to Nusakambangan. The families of Chan and Sukumaran may also go to the island if they wish, but Mr Putra told Daily Mail Australia that they would probably remain at Sodong dock while the executions took place. Around midnight Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran will each be taken to a clearing on the island to face a firing squad of twelve men armed with rifles, nine of which are loaded with blanks and three with live rounds. .

The two Bali Nine death row inmates have begun their final journey . Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran have been driven out of their Bali prison and flown to Nusakambangan, where they will be executed . After a Hindu 'blessing' the Australians were taken to Denpasar airport in an armoured vehicle . They are being flown 700km west to Cilacap before being transported to 'Death Island' in another armoured vehicle . Sukumaran has been allowed to take pencils and a drawing book to Death Island. Both have asked for bibles. Once given official notice of their executions they will have 72 hours to live .

ambangan. As their transport sets off for the island where executions are carried out, the two men will find a dark and sinister existence in hell.
It will not be a place for the faint hearted. Nusakambangan is a place of unimaginable suffering, where inmates have committed crimes so heinous there is no mercy. They have no rights and their family can say nothing. As they board the prison van, Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran look to each other.
It was a final farewell. "I just want to say my love to my family," Chan said to his cellmate. "I love you brother."
Then, to the shock of the watching world, Chan and Sukumaran held each other for one last time. Their eyes locked, Sukumaran gave a small smile and a wave to say goodbye and Chan's smile was the brightest yet.
The convoy carrying Sukumaran and Chan left Balil's maximum security Kerobokan prison at 12:30pm local time yesterday, following the court's final decision, which upheld the pair's death sentence.
Indonesia's Supreme Court had given Chan and Sukumaran seven days to prepare their final thoughts and say their last goodbye to those they loved.
The duo and their cellmate have spent the past week preparing and planning their final moments. Inmates say Sukumaran is preparing to receive his last rites, the Islamic prayer that prepares a man for his transition into the afterlife.
The two men have been in a maximum security jail on Nusakambangan island, just west of Lombok. The island is so dangerous inmates are prohibited from wearing their own clothes - they are all given white uniforms that are washed by prison staff. But it is much more than a prison, it is Indonesia's worst place of suffering.
Prisoners who have been moved to the island are either on death row, or serving a life sentence and can't ever get parole. They live in their cells with one other prisoner and the conditions are tough. The prison has been described as a "hell island" or "an island of hell" by prisoners and locals.
"The hell island has a 90% death rate, and this is because of the food, the water and the living conditions," Indonesian prisoner Anwar told Fairfax Media in 2008 after escaping from the notorious island. "I was in the same prison as Chan and Sukum


Rome (CNN)As the dust settles after Italy's high court ruled on Friday to overturn the latest guilty verdicts for Amanda Knox, 27, and her former Italian boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito, 31, in the 2007 murder of Meredith Kercher, many questions still linger in the case. Knox and Sollecito were tried together and convicted of murder by two separate courts.  But now they are free now, forever cleared. There won't be any civil trials like in the O.J. Simpson case because, according to Italian penal code, Italy's high court decision is final across all courts in the country. According to Italian lawyer Nicola Canestrini, who works on extradition and criminal cases between Italy and other countries, . "The high court decision is seen as the truth for the whole system." What now for the Kerchers? Francesco Maresca, lawyer for the Kercher family, told CNN that his clients are disappointed with the final ruling. "We expected more from the Italian judicial system," he said. "This is a failure to find justice for Meredith." Maresca says the Kerchers could try to appeal to the European Court of Human Rights  and argue that Italy failed to find those culpable of killing their beloved daughter and sister but they have yet to make that decision. "If they think Italy hasn't fulfilled the duty, they could sue Italy," Canestrini told CNN. Such a claim could be made based on the final conviction handed down to Rudy Guede, a man from the Ivory Coast who was convicted for his role in Kercher's murder in 2008 in a fast-track trial that is still under seal. When the high court ruled definitively on his case in 2010, they wrote explicitly in their reasoning that he was one of three assailants but did not name who they were. Knox and Sollecito both spent four years in prison during their initial trial and first appeal. They applied to Italy's high court to be put under house arrest but because Knox was a foreigner and deemed a flight risk, they were both denied. Sollecito may now have cause to sue Italy for false imprisonment. Italy pays around €12 million every year for locking up people who are later cleared of charges, according to Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi who is introduced measures to reform the judicial system. But, Canestrini says if Sollecito at any time lied to investigators before he was arrested, he may forfeit his right to reimbursement for being held.  Sollecito changed his story more than once before finally settling on an alibi with Knox, so a legal battle could focus on whether anything he told investigators led directly to his arrest. Canestrini also says that Knox could potentially sue Italy for one year of false imprisonment, but because she admittedly lied to investigators early on which led to her arrest, she would likely not have much of a case. "Because she initially admitted to a role in the crime, she wouldn't likely win. If a suspect lies to investigators before they are arrested, it is difficult to prove they were falsely imprisoned," Canestrini says. In one of her initial interrogations in 2007, she told investigators she was in the house when Kercher was killed at which time she accused Patrick Lumumba, her boss at a pub where she worked, of the murder. She later recanted that statement, but Lumumba spent two weeks in prison because of her false claim. In 2013, Italy's high court ruled definitively on a slander charge against her for the false accusation and upheld a three-year prison term and ordered her to pay Lumumba $40,000 euro. Knox's lawyer Carlo Dalla Vedova told CNN that Knox doesn't feel any revenge or resentment towards Italy. In fact, he said she will go back one day. "This has been an nightmare for her, so we finally got the right decision," he said. "We always thought this was the only decision possible." Sollecito's lawyers were equally pleased with the outcome. "The verdict that we just received doesn't prove us partly right, It proves us completely right," Giulia Bongiorno told reporters outside the court. "There were two possible verdicts: (One was to) overturn this verdict, but go back to it later. Instead, the overturn is without any referral. Among all the possible and imaginable overturning options, this is the one which says "be advised, we won't ever even make the hypothesis of an implication of Raffaele Sollecito in this case ever. Enough, enough, enough." Knox, too, made her own statement from her mother's home in Seattle after hearing the news. She thanked all those who supported her innocence, and said she needed to take time to digest what being free really means. When asked if she had a message to the Kerchers about their daughter, she said, "She deserved so much in this life. I'm the lucky one."

Knox and Sollecito were tried together and convicted of murder, but now cleared . Family of victim Meredith Kercher "expected more from the Italian judicial system" Knox's lawyer says Knox doesn't feel any revenge or resentment towards Italy .

2007 murder of British student Meredith Kercher, the questions about the case's outcome, its effects on the Kercher family, and the Italian justice system will likely last for years to come.
"I was speechless" when the verdict was read out, the sister of the murdered student, Stephanie Kercher, told CNN's Richard Quest on Monday. "It's just such a sad day for the Kerchers, and a sad day for the Italian system."
"I think we're all shocked. I mean, I would have loved to see them both being sent back to prison, but at the same time I think it's a very bad day for Italian justice," she added. "I was not expecting the Italian courts to throw the case out so fast."
As a key prosecution witness, Italian forensic scientist Giuliano Mignini, the lead investigator in the case, is under fire in the U.S. for his handling of the DNA evidence and his work as a defense consultant.
While many in the U.S. believe that he got the wrong man, and the wrong verdict, the Italian public, media and politicians have been staunchly behind the "Mignini effect," with the majority of Italians believing that Knox and Sollecito are guilty of Kercher's death.
The reaction to Friday's verdict has been mixed. Many Italians and journalists have accused the United States and the British media of trying to influence the trial in favor of Knox. "Today American justice has been denied," Italy's foreign minister, Franco Frattini, told CNN.
The Kerchers, however, who remain unconvinced of Knox's innocence, and who have always believed in Sollecito's guilt, see the jury's decision as "the best way forward for us, for Meredith."
But how do the rest of the Kercher family feel?
"I think their feelings are mixed, because of course they are still bereft," says Quest. "They are still grieving for Meredith; they don't know what to make of the verdict, how to cope with this verdict."
The Kercher family has long been frustrated by the length of the trials, by the lack of evidence against Knox and Sollecito and by the inability of the Italian justice system to find their daughter's killer.
"There's just so much of this case that I think people are


‘My wrist had started to get uncomfortable, so I decided to get it checked out,’ said Lucy Norman . As she looked at the piece of paper in front of her, Lucy Norman massaged her fingers and puzzled over the spidery, illegible writing. As a personal assistant, she relied on her ability to take accurate, concise notes and was proud of her neat handwriting. Yet the words she’d just written were no better than a scrawl. ‘I’d start writing as normal, but within just a few words, it would fade into little more than a scribble,’ says Lucy, 42, who lives in Barford St Michael, Oxfordshire, with her husband Angus, 64, an engineer. ‘It was as if my hand would just stop working. ‘I’d also been having trouble typing, hitting the wrong letters — previously, I’d been able to touch type accurately at high speed.’ Initially, Lucy blamed the problem on tiredness from long working hours and her commute into Central London to work at an energy company. But after six months of suffering these symptoms, she made an appointment to see her GP. ‘My wrist had started to get uncomfortable, so I decided to get it checked out,’ she says. ‘At the time I was 36, so I didn’t suspect anything sinister, but I couldn’t ignore something that affected the skills that were so intrinsic to my work. 'If I couldn’t write or type, how could I continue to be a PA?’ Her doctor diagnosed repetitive strain injury (RSI) in the wrist, caused by typing and writing over 20 years, and told her there was nothing they could do. ‘I accepted the diagnosis without question,’ says Lucy. ‘It seemed to make perfect sense given my line of work.’ RSI is an umbrella term for pain in the muscles, nerves and tendons caused by repetitive movement and over-use. It is extremely common — research shows as many as 73 per cent of people who use a computer at work experience it, with an estimated 200,000 cases of work-related musculoskeletal complaints in the hand, wrist, arm, elbow, shoulder and neck last year alone, according to official statistics. Typical RSI conditions include carpal tunnel syndrome, where a nerve in the wrist becomes compressed. Other common causes include tendonitis (inflammation of a tendon) or tenosynovitis (inflammation of a tendon sheath). Lucy began to experience tremors in her leg 18 months after being diagnosed with RSI. ‘I’d also started having difficulty with simple tasks, such as brushing my teeth, so I began to get concerned,’ she said . Since there is no test for RSI, diagnosis is usually made on the basis that the condition developed following a repetitive task and is relieved by resting from it. But experts warn that the term RSI is increasingly being used as a blanket diagnosis, and could mask other more serious conditions, such as rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis (MS), diabetes and even Parkinson’s disease. That’s because the early signs of each of these conditions are so similar to RSI that doctors often consider it first. For example, with diabetes, long-term poor management of blood sugar levels (often because the condition hasn’t been diagnosed) can lead to tingling, numbness and pain in the fingers — all symptoms of RSI, too. ‘The term RSI is really very vague,’ says Professor Tony Kochhar, a consultant orthopaedic surgeon. ‘Because it covers such a wide range of ambiguous symptoms, it is easy to see how doctors can attribute them to the condition when they are, in fact, indicative of something else entirely. ‘The most common are rheumatoid arthritis and MS, but it could be a different neurological condition, such as Parkinson’s, or diabetes.’ ‘The consultant seemed to be taking it far more seriously than 18 months previously,' said Lucy . He says that when RSI is suspected, and particularly where there is pain but no sign of injury, such as inflammation, swelling or problems with nerve function, this should be the starting point of investigations to pin down the root cause. ‘I don’t think that to simply identify that a patient has pain and accept it as a condition in its own right is helpful,’ says Professor Kochhar, visiting professor of sports science at the University of Greenwich. He says that once the specific cause has been worked out, each individual condition that may be put under the umbrella of RSI is ‘absolutely treatable’. ‘However, the term “RSI” is so nebulous, treatment is very varied depending on the root cause of the pain. In fact, I think the term should be banned. ‘The key is getting an accurate diagnosis, with all therapists and doctors working together to treat the problem, rather than just accepting it.’ Lucy’s was a classic case of RSI misdiagnosis. After seeing her GP, she tried her best to ignore her symptoms, typing more slowly to maintain her accuracy and using a ruler to keep her writing straight. But 18 months later, she began to experience tremors in her leg, so returned to her GP. ‘I’d also started having difficulty with simple tasks, such as brushing my teeth, so I began to get concerned,’ she says. After walking and writing tests at the GP surgery, she was immediately referred to a neurologist at the Nuffield Hospital in Warwickshire, near where she lived at the time. ‘The consultant seemed to be taking it far more seriously than 18 months previously, but they still didn’t give me any indication of what it could be,’ says Lucy. She was sent for an MRI scan on her brain, which was normal. A week later, she had a DaT scan, which determines the level of dopamine in the brain — this chemical plays a vital role in regulating movement. Lack of dopamine is characteristic of Parkinson’s disease, causing tremors, slowed movement and stiff, inflexible muscles. The DaT scan confirmed that Lucy did have Parkinson’s, and she was put on medication to slow the progression. But four years since her correct diagnosis, she has had to give up work. ‘I can’t write very well or type any more, and I tend to stammer and drop things, but I can honestly say I have a better quality of life,’ she says. ‘Before, I was working long hours and felt permanently stressed — now, I can spend time with my husband and relax and enjoy life. ‘I’m chairman of our village hall committee and run a Saturday food market, which keeps me busy. 'My symptoms are very mild and progressing very slowly, so I consider myself lucky.’ 'My symptoms are very mild and progressing very slowly, so I consider myself lucky,’ said Lucy . Lucy also insists she has no anger or animosity towards the GP who misdiagnosed RSI. ‘It’s notoriously difficult to diagnose Parkinson’s in its early stages — and even if I had been diagnosed earlier, it’s unlikely it would have made any difference to the progression of my illness. It’s an easy mistake to make.’ Indeed, it can be difficult for any GP to pick up on the wide variety of symptoms of Parkinson’s, says Professor David Burn, a neurologist and clinical director of the charity Parkinson’s UK. The problem is that many of its symptoms, such as loss of smell, constipation, a frozen shoulder and spidery writing, can be signs of other conditions. And they can appear up to a decade before motor symptoms, such as a tremor, slowness or rigidity of movement. Trishna Bharadia is another patient whose RSI turned out to be something far more serious. Eleven years ago, she went to her GP after her grip inexplicably became weaker — she needed help using a knife and fork to cut up her food. Having been diagnosed with RSI, she was referred to a physiotherapist for strengthening exercises. ‘My job involved working on a computer a lot, so I accepted what I was told,’ says Trishna, 35, a translator and media analyst from Marlow, Buckinghamshire. ‘But within three years, my symptoms had progressed quite significantly and I’d gradually lost all sensation down my left side, starting in a small area of my leg and then spreading from my toe to my shoulder blades.’ She adds: ‘That lasted for three months. But then I went back to my GP and was referred to a neurologist, who sent me for an MRI scan.’ After further testing, she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. This affects nerves in the brain and spinal cord, causing a wide range of symptoms, including uncontrolled muscle movement, balance and vision problems and fatigue. ‘It wasn’t until that point that my neurologist looked back at my history and said the first episode of “RSI” was likely to have been MS,’ says Trishna, who volunteers for the MS Trust and other charities. ‘I now know that the symptoms of MS can easily be attributed to other things if you look at them in isolation, so it’s easy to ignore them or accept that it’s something else.’ Parkinson’s Awareness Week runs from April 20 to 26. Visit parkinsons.org.uk .

At 36, Lucy Norman was diagnosed with repetitive strain injury (RSI) But 18 months later, she began to experience tremors in her leg . She had a DaT scan, which determines the level of dopamine in the brain . Lack of dopamine is characteristic of Parkinson’s disease . It confirmed she had Parkinson’s, and she was put on medication .

ible handwriting.
‘Is this the results I’m looking at?’ she thought. After several minutes of reading the unfamiliar letter in the unfamiliar language, she sighed heavily, closed her eyes and rubbed her temples.
A few more minutes of silence ensued.
A few more minutes of silence ensued.
‘This can’t be it, surely?’
‘I should have known better than to trust “Dr P” - I don’t even think he has a medical degree, honestly, the “P” stands for “pretentious”. I never should have let him do the tests, it wasn’t worth it in the end!’
‘Why did I ever believe that “Dr P” was a doctor, when he couldn’t even bother to fill out the medical forms properly. He just wrote his initials, so it’s all illegible and I can’t understand it! What’s wrong with him?’
‘No, no, that’s not me, that’s not me, I am not going to cry, I’m not going to cry – I am an adult!’
Finally, she opened her eyes once more, and began to read the paper again.
She read again: “The results of your tests have shown that you have a tumour, and this is probably cancer – you have been diagnosed with metastatic cancer”.
This was not the diagnosis that Lucy Norman was expecting.
After a few moments of stunned silence, a series of questions began to flood into her head.
‘But I don’t even know what cancer is! I’ve never heard of cancer before - this isn’t something you usually learn about at school, is it?’
‘What does that actually mean? What does it mean for me?
‘How will this affect my life?
‘How will I be able to live with myself if I can’t help these people who are affected by this condition?
‘Am I going to die?
‘What does this mean for my family and friends?’
Lucy Norman knew that one of the hardest things about being diagnosed with a terminal illness, is that the prognosis is often quite negative.
Lucy Norman knew that one of the hardest things about being diagnosed with a terminal illness, is that the prognosis is often quite negative.
After a diagnosis, the next step is to understand and manage your illness. If your doctor tells you that the disease is life-threatening,


Dozens of soldiers from a battalion famous for using the emblem of a vicious comic book avenger to strike fear into the enemy in Afghanistan are heading to Iraq with ISIS in their sights. The Telemark Battalion is an elite mechanised infantry unit of the Norwegian Army which has been involved in the fight against the Taliban as part of the NATO-led security mission since 2003. Around 50 soldiers from Telemark will be heading to the city of Irbil in northern Iraq to train Kurdish forces to help them in their fight against Islamic State, the Norwegian ministry of defence has confirmed. It is thought the mission will begin in early April. Scroll down for video . The patch worn by Telemark Battalion soldiers (left), recalls the Punisher symbol of Marvel's comic book vigilante (right), with the words 'Jokke - we will never forget' honoring fallen comrade Claes Joachim Olsson . A Telemark soldier in action in Afghanistan. The battalion has been involved in the fight against the Taliban as part of the NATO-led security mission since 2003 and lost two soldiers in the conflict, including Olsson . ISIS fighters in Aleppo, Syria. Telemark troops are travelling to northern Iraq to train Kurdish Peshmerga forces in their fight against the extremists . Some instructors will also be sent to the Iraqi capital Baghdad in the hopes of stemming an insurgency which now controls large tracts of northern Iraq and Syria. The Telemark Battalion attracted headlines in 2010 when reports emerged some of its soldiers were spray-painting the Punisher symbol on houses and property belonging to Afghans suspected of being members of the Taliban. The Punisher is a Marvel Comics antihero and vigilante who slaughters criminals and mobsters and has a striking skull-shaped emblem. Since the death of Claes Joachim Olsson - known by his nickname 'Jokke' - in January 2010, some members of the unit took to wearing patches featuring the Punisher logo and the words 'Jokke - we will never forget'. The 22-year-old was killed when the storm tank he was travelling in was hit by a Taliban roadside bomb southeast of the village of Ghowrmach in northwest Afghanistan. Telemark Battalion commander Major Rune Wenneberg (pictured centre in the green beret) fires up his troops in Afghanistan with the rallying cry 'To Valhalla!' The insignia of the Telemark Battalion (left), which was lead by the fierce Major Rune Wenneberg (right) Telemark soldiers in Afghanistan, where they became famous for spray-painting the Punisher symbol on houses and property belonging to Afghans suspected of being members of the Taliban . The wearing of Punisher patches was subsequently banned by the Norwegian military leadership, though some soldiers reportedly continued to do so. Following Olsson's death a video emerged of company commander Major Rune Wenneberg firing up his troops with a rousing battle cry name-checking Valahalla, the mystical hall of Norse mythology where specially chosen warriors go after they've been killed in combat. During the footage Wenneberg reportedly cries: 'You are the predator. Taliban is the prey. To Valhalla!', as his troops punch their weapons in the air in support. One former soldier knows who firsthand how ferocious Telemark fighters can be is American Charles Stanley, who helped provide logistics for units from the Norwegian battalion when they underwent two weeks of cold weather training in preparation for deployment to Bosnia in the late 1990s. The 51-year-old, who is a former sergeant in the 82nd Airborne Division of the US Army, told MailOnline they would be a fierce asset to Kurdish Peshmerga troops in their efforts to combat murderous extremists. He said: 'ISIS should fear them for sure. They didn't hold back in work or play and when they went to the task of battle that was all of the business they cared for until the mission was completed. An Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga fighter is pictured in September 2014 firing at Islamic State positions from the top of Mount Zardak, 25  kilometres east of Mosul in northern Iraq. Fighters like him are soon to benefit from the expertise of the Telemark Battalion - some of the fiercest soldiers in the world . ISIS fighters on the march. Charles Stanley, a former sergeant in the 82nd Airborne Division of the US Army, says the jihadists should fear the Norwegian forces being sent to aid their Kurdish enemies . ISIS has now expanded its reach across much of northern Iraq and holds the city of Mosul, around 90 kilometres from the Kurdistan capital Irbil, to where the 50 Telemark soldiers are being sent . 'ISIS is a force of uncontrolled chaos and they have no discipline or defined battlefield strategy other than overcome by force. 'This well-trained and disciplined unit of Norwegian soldiers would be able to make very short work of any ISIS soldiers they encountered.' Now a director of technology at a Catholic high school in Modesto, California, Mr Stanley added: 'My take on them is that they were a very aggressive and rugged team of warriors. 'They had the attitude of whatever comes our way we will demolish it, be that from eating chow to driving their mechanised vehicles. 'There was no half way with them - it was all or nothing in everything they did. I have a long history with airborne paratroopers and they are some of the toughest soldiers in the army, on and off duty - they train hard and play even harder. 'The Telemark Battalion guys were every bit if not more rough and tumble. 'I would say compared to other country's soldiers they were among some of the most competitive and competent warriors that I have ever worked with. 'When we were in [Operation] Desert Storm [against Saddam Hussein in 1990] their equivalent would have possibly been the French Foreign Legion soldiers as far as ferocity and competence goes.' American Sniper Chris Kyle, who had his own take on the Punisher symbol, which can be seen here on his cap . Kyle's logo, with the Punisher skull and cross hairs . The 11-year veteran of the 82nd Airborne and father-of-one, whose son is currently serving in the US Army, says the Punisher symbol was not being used when he worked with the soldiers. He said: 'That incident didn't happen until later in Afghanistan and I was aware of it and heard the stories. 'That type of scare tactic has been employed for many years by many armies - the Vietnam War had its death card ace of spades, and now they have moved to spray-painted skulls and comic book reference symbols. 'Chris Kyle the American Sniper had his also.' Kyle is known for using a variation of the Punisher symbol himself, featuring the words 'Despite what your momma told you...violence does solve problems'. The Telemark saboteurs back in Britain after the incredible raid. Six Norwegian soldiers destroyed Hitler's nuclear dream in February 1943 at the Norsk Hydro plant near the town of Rjukan, Norway . The Telemark Battalion share a name with a group of legendary Second World War saboteurs. The Heroes of Telemark (pictured), carried out a famous raid which helped thwart Hitler's plans to build a Nazi nuclear bomb. The team successfully destroyed a heavy water production facility at the Norsk Hydoelectric plant in Telemark, a region of southern Norway, in 1943. The raid, which is regarded as one of the most successful acts of sabotage in the whole war, was also remarkable for the fact all the team managed to escape by cross-country skiing 250 miles into Sweden. The heavy water or deuterium oxide which the Norsk plant produced, was essential to the German scientists working on an atomic bomb project and the allies were desperate to destroy it. It was no soft target. Perched on an icy ravine, surrounded by machine gun-toting guards and floodlights the plant was virtually impregnable. But the six-man all Norwegian squad from the Special Operations Executive, trained at Brickendonbury in Hertfordshire, managed to parachute in and get the job done. In what was known as Operation Gunnerside, the raiders broke into the plant and set charges, the explosion of which caused 1000lbs of heavy water to wash away. They then made their remarkable escape, imortalised in the 1964 Hollywood film The Heroes of Telemark, starring Kirk Douglas.

Telemark Battalion is an elite mechanised Norwegian Army infantry unit . Soldiers known for wearing patches with Marvel character's skull emblem . Antihero from comic series is vigilante who slaughters criminals . Patches honour comrade killed by Taliban roadside bomb in Afghanistan . Fifty fighters will travel to Irbil in northern Iraq to help Kurdish forces . Peshmerga troops are locked in bitter armed struggle with Islamic State .

 Norwegian army that’s been training in Iraq with the US troops. Now it’s off to the war against the self-declared Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.
The first soldiers to begin their mission this summer were sent off on Thursday, with a further 90 to follow soon after. They will drive their armoured vehicles to the Kurdish capital of Erbil to join up with the British, American and others.
‘This is not a training exercise,’ Norwegian defence minister Ine Eriksen Søreide told broadcaster NRK. She said the Norwegian soldiers would be involved in operations on the ground.
Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten notes that the soldiers have recently undergone anti-ISIS training in northern Iraq, and have also taken part in missions against so-called Islamic State in Syria.
‘No-one has trained more against Islamic State in Iraq than we have,’ Norwegian general Espen Barth Eide told Aftenposten.
‘We’ve trained more soldiers from other armies in Iraq than any other country. We have a lot of experience of the fight against IS (Islamic State).’
The elite Telemark soldiers have long been known as ‘Norwegian special forces’ on account of their fearsome reputation – and in Afghanistan, it was their ability to intimidate and kill Taliban fighters that earned them their nickname, the ‘killer clowns’.
The comic-book character Red Scorpion is part of the Norwegian special forces unit. Photo: Grete Dalland/DPA
‘They’re known as ‘Norwegian special forces’ in Afghanistan,’ Eriksen Søreide said on Thursday. ‘Everyone knows the unit by that name.’
Their nickname is derived from the comic-book character Red Scorpion, a commando who terrorised Norway’s enemy in the war against the Soviet Union during the 1940s.
‘Red Scorpion is known to have killed 70-80 people in a few weeks,’ said Eriksen Søreide. ‘It’s like being called Batman or Spider-Man in the US.’
Norwegians serving in the unit have been issued with an emblem that combines the face of the Red Scorpion character with the symbol for the Norwegian special forces.
One of the Telemark soldiers who has earned his nickname is described as ‘a monster of a man’ who’s ‘capable of throwing a tank’.
Aftenposten


Manchester United boosted their Champions League chances with a convincing win over Tottenham, racing into a three-goal lead in the first half before seeing the game out. Michael Carrick bossed the midfield, before Wayne Rooney stole the show with a brilliant goal - and an even better celebration. Sportsmail's Matt Barlow was at Old Trafford to run the rule over both sides... Wayne Rooney celebrates with his 'knockout' celebration as Manchester United take a three-goal lead . Manchester United . DAVID DE GEA: A relaxed spectator from the moment he scrambled across his goal to keep out back-pass from Jones until he saved from Kane in the last minute. 6. ANTONIO VALENCIA: Few problems of a defensive nature after his error against Arsenal and combined well with Mata in attack. 6. CHRIS SMALLING: Few centre halves have coped so well with Kane in recent weeks. Read it well, quick into the tackle and ran the ball out with style once or twice. 7 . David de Gea, who had remarkably little to do until a last-gasp save from Harry Kane, celebrates the win . PHIL JONES: Strong and assured - but for the sloppy back-pass which almost caught out De Gea in opening minutes. 6.5 . DALEY BLIND: Splendid first half, raiding forward from left-back to link up with Ashley Young as United tore Spurs apart before half-time. Good delivery from wide. 7. MICHAEL CARRICK: Took a grip of the game with two instances of clear-minded wit in the first half: a pass for Fellaini’s opener and a goal with his head to make it 2-0. 8.5. JUAN MATA: Like Carrick making his first Premier League start for two months, playing wide on the right where he often struggles to cover the ground. Added some silky touches. 6.5. MIchael Carrick heads the ball back across goal to put United two goals up after some poor Spurs defending . Carrick, who also created United's first goal for Marouane Fellaini, was the best player on the pitch . ANDER HERRERA: Supplied good energy, invention and forward thrust from midfield and a key to success of the formation. 6.5. MAROUANE FELLAINI: Huge first-half contribution. Spurs could not cope with him. One well-taken goal with his left foot and a key header in second. 7.5. ASHLEY YOUNG: Excellent reminder of his acceleration and trickery on the left-wing. Tormented Walker in the first half as United won the game. 7.5. Fellaini celebrates putting United into the lead with a well-placed finish in the ninth minute of the game . WAYNE ROONEY: Mobile and tireless, with wonderful vision to link up with his midfield runners. Scored a fabulous goal and may have had more. 8. Subs: Pereira for Mata (79 min) Premier League debut. Falcao for Fellaini (83). Rafael for Carrick (87) Manager: Louis van Gaal: Having started the season trying to cram as many attackers onto the pitch as possible, this 4-1-4-1 shape had a pleasing balance. 7. Rooney slots away after being handed the ball by lacklustre Nabil Bentaleb in the opening 45 . Louis van Gaal waves to the Manchester United fans after a game where he finally found his team's balance . Tottenham . HUGO LLORIS: Badly exposed by his team in the first-half. Little he could do with any of the goals, but unable to save Spurs this time. 6. KYLE WALKER: Torrid opening 45 minutes when he could not contain the first-half threat of Young and Blind on United’s left. Not helped by his midfield 4. ERIC DIER: Beaten in air by Fellaini for United second. Easily side-stepped by Rooney for the third. Easier after the break when United cruised. 4.5. JAN VERTONGHEN: Perhaps the only one of the defensive unit to escape with a little credit. Even so, not able to keep United at bay. 6. The Spurs defenders look shell-shocked at the half-time whistle after being completely over-run . DANNY ROSE: Not the result or performance he would have wanted in front of England boss Roy Hodgson, but most of the damage done by United on the other side. 5.5. RYAN MASON: Appeared overwhelmed by United’s intensity and the thrust of Fellaini and Herrera. Dragged right to help with Young and Blind, left holes for Fellaini to exploit. 5. NABIL BENTALEB: Like Mason, found it impossible to get any sort of grip on the game in midfield. Awful mistake for the third goal. 5. ANDROS TOWNSEND: A torrid half-hour. He supplied precious little protection for Walker and enjoyed little quality possession to attack. Hooked as Pochettino reshuffled. 4. Andros Townsend was withdrawn in the first half after a torrid first 30 minutes in Manchester . Townsend cannot bear to look as he sits on the Old Trafford bench after being replaced so early on . CHRISTIAN ERIKSEN: Flickers of magic from the Dane were absent. A victim of Tottenham’s inability to secure possession. 5. NACER CHADLI: Poor clearance gave Carrick chance to score the second. Swtiched to the right after Townsend subbed to provide more solidity, which he did. 5.5. HARRY KANE: A difficult afternoon in front of Hodgson. Ran hard as ever but was isolated and starved of the ball and it was the 89th minute before he tested De Gea. 5. Subs: Dembele for Townsend (31) helped make Spurs a little more solid 5; Lamela for Mason (64) minimal influence 4, Adebayor for Chadli (79) out of exile to little effect. Mauricio Pochettino may have made an early chance, but it was already too late for Tottenham on Sunday . Manger: Mauricio Pochettino: His team were stunned by United’s intense start and slow to adjust until he sent on Dembele for Townsend, by when it was too late. 5. Referee: Mark Clattenburg: Back at Old Trafford for Manchester United v Spurs a decade after missing the Pedro Mendes goal which crossed the line. This experience was far less controversial. 7.

Goals from Michael Carrick, Marouane Fellaini and Wayne Rooney earn win . Manchester United dominate against poor Spurs side at Old Trafford . Carrick produced a goal and an assist in superb display .

(and an assist), and Rafael gave United two-goal lead with his first ever goal for the club. United made hard work of the win though, allowing Tottenham back into the game with a sloppy performance and a poor final 15 minutes where they were lucky not to concede.
Starting XI
For the last six months or so, people have been saying that it is inevitable United and Barcelona will qualify for the Champions League semi-finals, with little to no debate as to who the favourite is. Whilst this may have been true a few months back, this is no longer the case. Barcelona may still be the favourite to qualify, but their loss in Madrid to Real Madrid yesterday has seen their lead on second place drop to just 8 points with 3 games in hand. That means that Barcelona would have to win all 3 games whilst United drop points in their other 3 games in order for United to catch up. That is a very unlikely scenario at best. Barcelona are still looking as invincible as ever, whilst Manchester United have become anything but. It is not all doom and gloom however, there is still a slim chance that United could steal the second seed from the Catalans, but it is by no means an easy road.
It is difficult to see just where Manchester United’s win came from, it certainly wasn’t from the midfield who were overrun at times and never controlled the tempo of the game. Carrick and Scholes both played well and helped United to take control in the first half, but they were far from the dominant force they have been in previous weeks. It’s difficult to imagine this performance going unnoticed by Sir Alex Ferguson, and it makes you wonder what he will do with the United midfield this summer. I have said this numerous times before, but it cannot be stressed enough how weak United’s midfield is – Carrick and Scholes are two world class players, but they cannot carry the team by themselves.
To move on to the defence, they were very shaky in the first half. Nemanja Vidić looked solid on a number of occasions and Rafael got a bit lucky (at the very least) for his goal, but United are still prone to terrible mistakes. The goal we conceded was from a corner, although some of the blame has to lie with Nani for getting caught in two minds and not knowing whether to go to the near post or the back post. Nani is United’s best winger at times, but he was dreadful yesterday


Pakistan finally got their World Cup campaign up and running as they beat Zimbabwe by 20 runs in a low-scoring contest in Brisbane. Batting first they made 235 - recovering from four for two - and were then able to restrict Zimbabwe to 215 all out in their chase, meaning they picked up a first victory after defeats to India and West Indies. Captain Misbah-ul-Haq's 73 underpinned the Pakistan batting, while Mohammad Irfan (four for 30) and Wahab Riaz (four for 35) shone with the ball. Pakistan's Mohammad Irfan celebrates the wicket of Solomon Mire; the bowler took four wickets for 30 runs . Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq top-scored for his side, managing 73 runs before being dismissed . Ul-Haq plays a shot, while Zimbabwe wicket keeper Brendan Taylor watches on from behind the stumps . They shackled Zimbabwe, with Brendan Taylor's 50 not enough to get the job done. Irfan removed the top three for a combined 46, having Chamu Chibhabha (nine) and Sikandar Raza (eight) edging him to second slip, while Hamilton Masakadza holed out to mid-on (29). Taylor had made good progress but nicked Riaz behind for a 72-ball 50, and the wickets continued to fall as Sean Williams hit Rahat Ali to backward point (33). Solomon Mire made just eight before Irfan got rid of him, and Craig Ervine 14 nicked Riaz to Umar Akmal - one of five catches for the keeper. The Pakistan players celebrate after taking the wicket of Zimbabwe's Wahab Riaz during their Pool B match . Earlier in the day, Shahid Afridi was dismissed for a duck, but Pakistan managed to put together a total of 235 . Tendai Chatar (second left) is surrounded by his Zimbabwe team-mates after dismissing Nasir Jamshed . Tuwanda Mupariwa went for a duck, Tinashe Panyangara was run out for 10 and then, when Elton Chigumbura edged Riaz behind, the game was done. It was fortunate for Pakistan that they were not facing a more dangerous side considering their own score. Their innings got off to a terrible start and they found themselves reeling on four for two after only 23 balls. Nasir Jamshed was the first man out, caught at square leg off the bowling of Tendai Chatara. Elton Chigumbura suffered a suspected torn quadricep while fielding, but managed to bat later on in the day . Chigumbura lies on the turf in Brisbane, but the Zimbabwe captain later took to the field, scoring 35 runs . Taylor (left) watches on as Afridi dives low to his left to stop the ball going past him during the match . The same bowler took the second wicket too, inducing an edge off Ahmed Shehzad who nicked behind for an 11-ball duck. Haris Sohail joined up with Misbah and the duo put on 54 until the former was caught at short mid-wicket, Raza doing the job. Another healthy stand, this time of 69, pushed the team score behind a hundred, before Akmal (33) was cleaned up by Williams. Afridi (centre) walks from the crease after being dismissed for a duck off the bowling of Sean Williams . Tawanda Mupariwa (centre) celebrates after he caught and bowled Sohaib Maqsood of Pakistan . It had been a fine performance by Zimbabwe at that point and it got better when Shahid Afridi holed out for a second-ball duck on his 35th birthday, bowled by Williams. Sohaib Maqsood added 21, having been dropped by Ervine on eight, while a substitute fielder also shelled Riaz when he was on 41, with the number 10 going on to make his first ODI half-century from 45 balls. He was left unbeaten on 54 at the end, with Sohail caught and bowled by Mupariwa and Misbah removed for an excellent 73 when he was caught at long on, giving Chatara his third scalp for 35 runs. Zimbabwe's Sikandar Raza avoids a short delivery from Pakistan's 7ft 1 bowler Irfan, who impressed . Irfan adjusts his hat as he watches on from the boundary during Zimbabwe's innings .

Pakistan won the toss, decided to bat, and recorded 235-7 in their innings . Zimbabwe captain Elton Chigumbura suffered a suspected quadricep tear while fielding but managed to bat despite his injury . Despite coming close, thanks to a heroic effort from Chigumbura at the end of the innings, Zimbabwe could not reach the total . Zimbabwe were bowled out for 215, and Pakistan recorded their first win of the 2015 World Cup to move off the bottom of Pool B .

 the Zimbabweans to 215 for nine.
Earlier Pakistan had been skittled for 103 - their second lowest total in one-dayers - with Tendulkar going for 20.
This was Zimbabwe's fifth World Cup defeat, their heaviest ever, and they are still seeking their first win. They travel next to Melbourne to face Sri Lanka.
Scorecard | Stats | Match Report | Bulletin | Photo gallery
Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq was glad to get into the thick of the action after four straight defeats, albeit against quality opponents.
"It was a good win," he said. "That's an important game for us to win - and it was good to get a win [in this World Cup]."
He added: "This win does give me satisfaction. I knew we could win this game and the pressure was on them. We didn't start well but we still could have won the game. If we play well we can beat anybody."
Having lost their first two matches to Australia and India, this was their first win - and they did it in rather surprising circumstances, given the strength of their batting line-up.
When Pakistan's openers Abdul Razzaq (4) and Saeed Anwar (6) fell in the space of two overs, they were 16 for two.
But Inzamam and Mohammad Yousuf (51) steadied things and then Pakistan exploded into life as both were dropped in the space of two balls at midwicket by Prosper Utseya - who had also spilled the first one of the series against Australia.
Zimbabwe then went for four successive wickets before Inzamam and Yousuf added 88 for the fourth wicket to take their side to 165.
Inzamam fell in the last ball of the 33rd over, and Kamran Akmal (34) went for a duck when he hit one straight to extra cover. Then Mohammad Sami (9) was trapped lbw - umpire Billy Bowden had no hesitation in calling the decision, and the appeal was hardly excessive.
However, Inzamam's decision to bring himself on - he had earlier taken a wicket - was not one his captain would have made.
He came in the 36th over and took eight balls to give away five runs


It seemed like a major coup for Ed Miliband. Martin Freeman, one of Britain’s most bankable Hollywood stars, was last night unveiled as the first big celebrity backer of Labour’s 2015 general election campaign. The millionaire actor, who has enjoyed a dizzying rise to international superstardom with the Hobbit trilogy, was the focus of a glossy three-minute film in which he insisted Mr Miliband’s party would ‘make sure the economy works for all of us, not just the privileged few’. Millionaire actor Martin Freeman (pictured) is the focus of a glossy three-minute film in which he insists Mr Miliband’s party would ‘make sure the economy works for all of us, not just the privileged few’ But last night, the Labour leader faced embarrassment after it emerged that Freeman is a former supporter of Arthur Scargill’s far-left socialist party which openly refused to vote Labour at the 2005 general election. Freeman himself also faced accusations of hypocrisy after it was reported that he sends his son to a £12,000-a-year private school. Not only that, but his long term partner once declared herself bankrupt over an unpaid £120,000 tax bill – despite Freeman having an estimated fortune of £10million. In last night’s three-minute broadcast, Freeman, who found fame in the satirical British sitcom The Office, said: ‘I don’t know about you, but my values are about community, compassion, decency; that’s how I was brought up.’ Freeman with his partner Amanda Abbington (pictured) who declared herself bankrupt over an unpaid £120,000 tax bill, despite living with Freeman, who is worth more than £10million . In an address straight to the camera, the 43-year-old, who also stars in Sherlock, claimed the Tories would take the country on a ‘rollercoaster of cuts’ while Labour would ‘make sure the economy works for all of us, not just the privileged few, like me’. The actor also insisted the Tories ‘don’t believe in the NHS’ and added: ‘For me, there’s only one choice – and I choose Labour.’ At first glance, it appeared to represent a much needed boost for Mr Miliband as Freeman is a good deal more famous than some of Labour’s other celebrity backers – such as Baldrick actor Tony Robinson. But last night it emerged that Mr Freeman spent years supporting a far-left Socialist Labour Party that was set up by the militant miners’ union boss Arthur Scargill in protest at New Labour. In an interview with the Guardian ahead of the 2005 election, Freeman declared that he voted for the party in 2001 and would not back Tony Blair. Asked how he would vote that year, he replied: ‘Not Labour’. The Socialist Labour Party, which is now almost defunct, campaigns for the ‘abolition of capitalism’ and the nationalisation of virtually every industry. Freeman faced accusations of hypocrisy after it was reported he sends his son to a private school . The Conservatives said Freeman’s decision to switch his support to Labour showed how far Mr Miliband had dragged the party to the Left. Tory MP Nigel Adams said: ‘Even Bilbo Baggins has recognised how far Labour has lurched to the left, imagine the chaos Red Ed would cause across Britain and the Shire.’ Labour was also facing potential embarrassment over revelations about Freeman’s personal life. Despite his socialist outlook, Freeman is reported to send his son to a school which charges up to £12,669 a year. A spokesman for the actor was asked to comment, but did not respond. It was a major coup for Labour leader Ed Miliband (pictured) but he faces embarrassment after it emerged Freeman is a former Scargill supporter . The star also hit the headlines two years ago after it emerged his long-term partner Amanda Abbington had declared herself bankrupt over an unpaid £120,000 tax bill, despite living with Freeman, who is worth more than £10million. Miss Abbington, who also appears in Sherlock, had been with Freeman for 11 years at the time. The couple have two children. The revelations sparked an outpouring of bad publicity for the couple, prompting Miss Abbington to settle her debts. She told the Radio Times later in 2013: ‘It’s fine, it’s being sorted out. It was a big mistake and I’m sorting it out right now. ‘It’s being paid off now. I would never want to go through this again. But I’m paying it off.’ Freeman’s decision to back Labour appeared to win the enthusiastic backing of Miss Abbington, who posted a message on Twitter saying: ‘F*** the Tories.’ Labour said the party election broadcast had received ‘unprecedented’ interest on the internet, with hundreds of thousands of people choosing to watch. The actor appears in front of a plain white background and, despite encouraging voters to put Labour in power, makes no mention of Mr Miliband or the prospect of him becoming the next prime minister. Instead, he focuses on contrasting Labour’s ‘values’ with those of the Tories, who he claims ‘have got sod all to offer the young’. Tory MP Nigel Adams said: ‘Labour is trying to whitewash Ed Miliband from their campaign – his MPs don’t want his photo on leaflets and now their party election broadcast doesn’t even mention him.'

Hollywood actor Martin Freeman was last night unveiled as Labour's first big celebrity backer of their 2015 general election campaign . Millionaire is focus of three-minute film promoting Ed Miliband's party . But Mr Freeman is a former supporter of Scargill's far-left socialist party . Faces accusations of hypocrisy after it was reported he sends son to private school and partner was declared bankrupt over £120,000 tax bill .

 star of The Hobbit and Sherlock was filmed addressing activists at the party’s annual conference, and speaking of his delight at becoming the latest celebrity to declare his support for Miliband. “It’s the biggest coup for any party in Britain right now,” the 42-year-old told an audience of the party faithful.
But this was the man who was just one of 10 British acting celebrities, including David Jason, Ricky Tomlinson, Richard Griffiths, Bill Nighy, Jason Manford and Sheridan Smith, who were paid hundreds of thousands of pounds to act in a Labour video that was meant to reassure voters that Miliband was not a “loser”, “an idiot” or the subject of a “fear factor”. But the campaign video, which featured stars such as Freeman, was branded a disaster by a Labour MP yesterday, just hours before the film was released on YouTube.
The video, which features Freeman, Griffiths, Tomlinson, Jason and Jason Manford, was billed by Labour as the most upbeat campaign ad ever. In it Freeman, Griffiths, Tomlinson and Jason Manford tell viewers that Miliband is “not an evil genius, but actually a very kind man”, with the actor Freeman describing him as the “loveliest, kindest, smartest, bravest, most caring person I’ve ever met” and Jason Manford as a man whose “smile is infectious”.
At times, the video looks like a parody. Freeman, in a grey suit and black bow tie, looks a touch nervous, and his co-stars appear to have not met each other before, as he says at the start of the video: “Today, I am a Labour MP, I stand with Martin Freeman.”
Griffiths, sporting a red tie, does not seem particularly happy that he has been brought in as a red herring to dispel worries about Miliband’s ability to take on David Cameron at PMQs. “I know what you’re thinking,” he says as Freeman talks about Miliband’s “kindness”. “The fact is, this is all a ploy. He is going to be the best PM since the days of Harold Wilson.”
The video ends with Freeman talking about his experience as a Labour MP – but again this was done in the past tense, although Miliband had not even stood for the leadership at this


Sadistic ISIS fanatics are turning children into an army of hundreds of murderous monsters willing to blow themselves up, die in battle and execute hostages for their twisted cause. Extremism experts warn children are being indoctrinated and radicalised from birth, leading to a 'whole generation who will know nothing other than ISIS ideology'. Their comments follow the release of a sickening new video that purports to show a boy of about 10 years old shooting dead of a 19-year-old Israeli-Arab who was taken hostage by the terror group. Scroll down for video . Training: Video footage released by the terrorist organisation shows children carrying guns during a training session . Armed: The children learn to fire AK-47s under the guidance of Islamic State militants in an unnamed training school . Young jihadi: It seems there is no age limit to attend an Islamic State school where children are 'brainwashed' Footage purports to show the child raise his gun and aim it at Muhammad Said Ismail Musallam's forehead before shooting him at point blank range . Vile: A new video appears to show a boy of about 10 years old shoot an Islamic State hostage in the head . The footage appears to show the child, now believed to be a French citizen, raise his gun and aim it at  Muhammad Said Ismail Musallam's forehead before shooting him at point blank range. The hostage seems to be shot a further three times on the ground before the boy lifts his gun to the sky in celebration, shouting  'Allahu Akbar!' and appearing to fire one final shot. The footage of a child seemingly carrying out such a brutal execution has sent shock waves around the world, but it came as no surprise to experts who have been following the brainwashing of youngsters by ISIS. Charlie Winter, a researcher at the Quilliam Foundation, a counter-extremism think tank, said: ‘It is something that has been going on for a long time now. 'It’s deeply, deeply worrying because these children are growing up without any outside influence. ‘They are kids that are being indoctrinated and radicalised from birth.' He added: ‘This is going to be a long-term problem – there is going to be a whole generation of kids in Northern Iraq and Eastern Syria who will know nothing other than Islamic State ideology. ‘I don’t think there is a choice in it for the children – they are the biggest victims in all of this.’ ‘I don’t think there is a choice in it for the children – they are the biggest victims in all of this,' said an expert . Indoctrinated: These children are learning to become Islamic State militants at a school run by the terror group . Combat training: Videos released by the group reveal the tough military training children are forced to undergo and the warped curriculum they learn in terrorist-run schools . Two boys wrestle on the floor at an Islamic State training school, where they are also taught to fire AK-47s . ISIS video claiming to show a young boy executing two Russian spies - Mamayev Jambulat Yesenajovich and Ashimov Sergey Nikolayavich . But how does ISIS turn these innocent children into bloodthirsty killers, and how is it able to so effectively? Videos released by the group reveal the tough military training children are forced to undergo and the warped curriculum they learn in terrorist-run schools. Last month, ISIS released a slickly-edited propaganda video showing boys as young as five being indoctrinated at a military-style training camp for 'cubs' in Syria. Children are said to be taught how to use weapons and even show how to behead using dolls. 'They teach them how to use AK-47s,' an Iraqi security official told NBC News. 'They use dolls to teach them how to behead people, then they make them watch a beheading, and sometimes they force them to carry the heads in order to cast the fear away from their hearts.' Other footage shows children being taught in an ISIS school before learning hand-to-hand combat and how to fire a gun. Pictures posted on ISIS-linked social media accounts have included babies posing with firearms and young children holding up the heads of beheading victims. Some propaganda videos attempt to show the 'lighter' side of life under the control of the caliphate, and unsophisticated ploys such as giving sweets to children seem to have played a part in the radicalisation. ISIS-branded clothing has been made for children and even newborn babies. In a nine-minute video, children in camouflage are seen being trained at the Farouk Institute for Cubs, in the Raqqa province in Syria . 'Teacher': In footage released by ISIS, this man teaches a group of children to write Arabic in a classroom . Unsophisticated ploys such as giving sweets to children seem to have played a part in the radicalisation . Islamic State hands out sweets to children in Benghazi, Libya - another ploy to attract even younger recruits . Human Rights Watch, an organisation which defends the rights of people worldwide, interviewed four former  ISIS child and adult fighters, as well as civilians in the terrorist-controlled areas in Syria. It found the militants have actively recruited children to send to military training camps and have used them in operations including suicide bombings. Barbaric: A child holds a severed head in a photograph too gruesome to show . The children, including Bassim, 17, who joined at just 16 after attending ISIS sermons, said they were recruited through public forums. Raed, 17, went to a training camp when he was just 16, after ISIS visited his hometown in Syria. 'I liked what they are wearing, they were like one herd,' he said. 'They had a lot of weapons. So I spoke to them, and decided to go their training camp in Kafr Hamra in Aleppo.' These children and the adults interviewed said there were youngsters aged 13 or younger undergoing the same training and performing the same military duties as adults. Amr, 17, told Human Rights Watch that when he joined the jihadi movement full-time, he was given weapons and equipment, as well as a salary. He even signed up for suicide missions because he felt social pressure to do so, although he was towards the end of the list, several hundred names down. One doctor said he treated a boy aged between 10 and 12 years old whose job it was to whip ISIS prisoners. In November last year, a United Nations Commission of Inquiry on Syria report found that massacres, the beheading of boys as young as 15, and amputations and lashings in public squares with residents - including children - forced to watch were on the list of crimes. Propaganda: An Islamic State fighter carrying a flag poses with two young children in Benghazi, Libya . Young jihadi: Abu Bakr al-Faransi is believed to be the youngest French child to die fighting for ISIS in Syria . This disgusting Islamic State photograph shows a man forcing a tiny baby to kick a severed head . The research, based on interviews and documents, photographs and video footage released by the group itself, showed there was widespread use of child soldiers, and forcing women to bear children to the fighters. It also discovered children are subjected to violence and are systematically recruited as soldiers - forced to witness and carry out atrocities. The report found ISIS was  trying to indoctrinate minority children and turn them against their families. Speaking to MailOnline, Professor Anthony Glees, director of the Centre for Security and Intelligence Studies at the University of Buckingham, said he wouldn't be surprised if  hundreds of children had been recruited. ‘This is about the brainwashing and sexual grooming of our young children,' he said. 'It's very different from what happens when 18+ year olds become radicalised and are recruited into becoming jihadists. They are grown-ups and responsible for what they do. ‘They have been preyed upon by sadistic fanatics.' Speaking to MailOnline, Professor Anthony Glees, director of the Centre for Security and Intelligence Studies at the University of Buckingham, said children have been 'preyed upon by sadistic fanatics' An ISIS interviewer asks one child, who is standing alongside an armed companion, what his life is like under the Islamic State caliphate at a fairground north of Mosul in Iraq . He added: 'The prime responsibility for this lies with the radicalisers and recruiters and the internet service providers who provide the links that they follow with such dedication that they turn their backs on their loved ones and the good things that all children should have, whatever their faith or ethnic background. ‘Instead, they have been delivered to those who peddle exploitation and death. We here now have some very tough questions to address. ‘Our laws make it plain that we owe a very clear duty of care to the children. They are kids.’ Just yesterday, it was reported a 13-year-old from France had died fighting for Islamic State in Syria. It's been reported that Abu Bakr al-Faransi, originally from Strasbourg, was killed when Government forces attacked a border post he was guarding. It is believed to be the youngest to die fighting for Islamic State in Syria. And last month, it was revealed ISIS had released a guidebook to help young mothers raise a 'Mujahid child'. 'Don't wait until they are seven to start, for it may be too late by then,' it says. Human Rights Watch has called on ISIS to stop deliberately recruiting children, in particular through weapons training and other military training in school environments. Forced fashion: Some children have been dressed in ISIS-branded military uniforms and t-shirts . Indoctrinated: Young babies have been pictured, miserably wrapped in Islamic State flags and an assortment of ill fitting hats .

Sickening new video appears to show a boy shooting dead an ISIS hostage . Extremism experts say children are now being indoctrinated from birth . Fears it will create 'generation who know nothing other than ISIS ideology' Videos released by militants reveal tough military training children undergo . Former child fighter was pressured into signing up for suicide missions .

 in Iraq and Syria.
The shocking figures, released today by anti-terror charity CAGE in its “Youth Jihadism Study Report,” reveal ISIS is training an estimated 3,000 child fighters a month, many of whom are 12 years old or younger.
That equates to a total of 9000 kids aged between five and 17 who have been radicalised by the terror group, with some of the youngest aged as young as five years old.
Around half of those fighting for ISIS are between 13 and 17 years old, whilst 13 are thought to have died as suicide bombers – 11 of them were children.
The report – the largest ever of its kind – reveals the terror group is taking children as young as five years old from as far as Europe and Asia and brainwashing them into extremists.
One child is said to have been 13 when he joined ISIS last summer, but the terror group then convinced the teen to travel to northern Iraq and fight for their cause.
A 12-year-old girl who fled the terror group is thought to have travelled to Syria in 2012 to fight alongside ISIS, according to the report.
The report adds another 16-year-old boy is suspected to have been killed after trying to escape back to the West from northern Iraq last summer.
CAGE released the report – called “The ISIS Effect: Youth Jihadism in Iraq and Syria – A ‘New’ Phenomenon or a Reassertion of a Longstanding Phenomenon?”
Director of CAGE, Asim Qureshi, said: “The UK and US Governments keep referring to the phenomenon of ‘home grown’ jihadists but this research proves that there is nothing ‘new’ about youth terrorism or youth recruitment.
“Extremist ideologies have always exploited the vulnerable and it is clear that ISIS’s recruitment and indoctrination process has also utilised the very real vulnerabilities of young boys and girls who become radicalised under its spell.
“This research shows the UK Government has failed to take these matters seriously enough, and as long as we have a Home Office that will not take the threat of radicalisation by children seriously, the risk of new young ‘lone wolves’ from all over the country will continue to grow.”
The report says the rise in numbers of children leaving the UK to fight alongside ISIS is largely due to the UK’s intervention in the war-torn