Rats Infesting Russian Trenches Due to Severe Cold... "Outbreak of Rat Fever" Claims Ukrainian Military

Ukrainian Authorities Claim Spread of Russian Hemorrhagic Fever
"Medical Support and Hygiene Conditions Declining... Infection Spreading"

Ukrainian military authorities claimed that rats are infesting the front lines in Ukraine, spreading a "rat fever" among Russian troops.

"Russian Troops on Kharkiv Front Suffering from Rat Fever," Claim

On the 27th of last month, a soldier was passing through a trench near a field camp in the Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine.
[Image source=TASS Yonhap News]

On the 20th (local time), Ukraine's military intelligence agency (GUR) stated via Telegram that infectious diseases have spread among Russian troops deployed on the eastern Kharkiv front due to a lack of winter clothing supplies and medical support, according to reports by Newsweek and others. However, the exact number of infected Russian soldiers was not disclosed.

The infectious disease claimed by the Ukrainian military is a type of hemorrhagic fever caused by hantavirus. It is known to be transmitted through direct contact with pathogens carried by rats or by inhaling rat excrement. Symptoms include headaches, high fever, rashes, and systemic bleeding. The fatality rate is reported to be around 2 to 3%.

If these claims are true, it is analyzed that the damage to Russian troops on the front line could increase. Russian soldiers are currently living in trenches, where hygiene conditions are reportedly very poor. Moreover, with the arrival of winter, it is suspected that swarms of rats gathered in the relatively warm trenches, spreading the pathogens.

However, there are also claims that although the troops are suffering, the command is ignoring the situation. Ukrainian authorities stated, "Complaints from Russian soldiers were ignored by the command," and "The command considered this as another sign of avoiding participation in combat operations." Currently, Ukrainian troops are also living in trenches, so the possibility of exposure to hemorrhagic fever cannot be ruled out.

'Hemorrhagic Fever' Pathogen First Discovered in Korea

Hemorrhagic fever is a well-known Category 3 infectious disease in Korea. The hantavirus was first discovered by Korea’s leading medical scientist, the late Professor Lee Ho-wang, Emeritus Professor at Korea University. In 1976, he discovered the pathogen and immune antibodies of hemorrhagic fever for the first time in the world from the lung tissue of a striped field mouse collected in the Hantan River basin. The virus was later named hantavirus after the location where it was found.

During World Wars I and II, thousands of soldiers died from hemorrhagic fever, and during the Korean War, 3,200 United Nations troops also suffered from the disease. Professor Lee developed the world’s first diagnostic kit for hemorrhagic fever in 1989 and succeeded in developing Korea’s first hantavirus vaccine in 1990. He was even considered a candidate for the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine and passed away in July last year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.