For weeks, Russian forces have been attempting to fortify the Zaporizhzhia region in Southern Ukraine in anticipation of a planned Ukrainian counteroffensive. This includes the construction of a defensive line that stretches continuously across a 45-mile length of occupied territory.

Whether this mega-trench, the so-called Putin Line, will be enough to stop Kyiv’s forces remains unclear, but already the Kremlin has faced a setback. There were reports last week that the trench line unearthed a burial site for cattle, and as a result some Russian soldiers contracted anthrax.

The unit was ordered to immediately quarantine, while two soldiers were admitted to a hospital in the occupied city of Melitopol.