Russian forces advance on Avdiivka

Ukrainian trenches have become infested by rats and mice in a stark echo of the First World War, it has been reported.

Rodent numbers have surged along the largely static 1,000km frontline, infecting soldiers with nausea-inducing diseases that also leave some bleeding from the eyes.

Videos shared on social media show mice and rats found in beds, backpacks, power generators, pockets, pillowcases and mortars.

“Imagine going to bed, and the night begins with a mouse crawling into your pants or sweater, or chewing your fingertips, or biting your hand,” a Ukrainian soldier going by the callsign Kira told CNN.

She added that 1,000 rats shared the trench where she and three others are stationed.

There are also infestations in the Russian trenches. Ukraine’s defence intelligence said in December that rat-bite fever had been spreading rapidly among Russian soldiers on the Kupyansk front.

The rodents are believed to be attracted to the warmth and food they can find in the trenches in bitterly cold winter conditions.

The war prevented crops being harvested in some areas, fuelling a bumper rodent mating season which reached its peak in autumn.