Dozens of Russian military personnel were killed after Ukraine bombed a school building.
Moscow confirmed that 89 of their troops died following the New Year’s Eve strike in the Russian-held town of Makiyivka near the Ukrainian city of Donetsk.
In their latest intelligence report on the Ukraine war, the UK ministry of defence said the high number of casualties was probably caused by ammunition being stored near to troop accommodation.
“The Russian military has a record of unsafe ammunition storage from well before the current war, but this incident highlights how unprofessional practices contribute to Russia’s high casualty rate,” the MoD said.
The strike, and resulting loss of life, is a massive blow to Vladimir Putin as the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine approaches.
The day before the attack, UK intelligence said the “continued churn” of senior military figures in the Russian army is an indication of the military’s internal struggles.
The Russian president also recently made a rare admission that the war was not going to plan.
Speaking to security workers in a video address, he acknowledged the ongoing situation in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions – two of the four Ukrainian areas Russia has illegally annexed – is “extremely difficult.”
