Eight Year Old Attacked by a Golden Eagle

This is the horrifying an eight-year-old girl was attacked by a golden eagle after the bird mistook her for its prey during a display.

Footage shows the hunting bird swooping on the child as shocked spectators watched on at a festival in the Issyk-Kul region of Central Asia's Kyrgyzstan.

Handlers, who had been demonstrating traditional eagle hunting skills, can be seen rushing over to free the girl after the eagle, with a wingspan of more than 6ft, clamped down on her with its talons.

The clip shows the girl being dragged away from the predator. She was later taken to hospital with a badly scratched back.

The handlers had been demonstrating traditional eagle hunting skills in the mountainous former Soviet republic in Central Asia.