from netscape.com

If there is one scene in "The Wizard of Oz" movie that truly terrifies children, it's the one where the Wicked Witch's flying monkeys soar through the eerie, shadowy sky and zoom down through the woods, plucking up Dorothy and her friends. That scene has almost come true. Blood-sucking monkeys that have been lurking at an ancient Hindu temple in India's northeast have attacked up to 300 children during the past three weeks.

The monkeys hide in the trees around the temple and then swoop down on unsuspecting children, "clawing them and even sucking a bit of blood," reports AP. Six-year-old Jolly Sharma told AP, "I was returning home from school when a monkey suddenly pounced on me, scratched my head and hand, and pushed me to the ground."

It is not uncommon for monkeys to roam in or near the tens of thousands of Hindu temples in India since they are seen as a symbol of the Hindu monkey god. At least 2,000 rhesus monkeys live around this particular temple, but until now none of them had ever exhibited aggressive behavior. The sudden surge of attacks at the Gauhati temple has authorities puzzled, but they suspect it could be caused by shrinking living spaces.

i want one for a pet so i can sick it on people

i see monkeys in the street all the time. except they never try to suck my blood, they usually beg me for change.

:-) house-trained monkey
http://www.palaestinensische-gemeinde.at/images/monkysabu.jpg

This is insanely awesome.

indubitably