Russian soldiers 'using 19th century shovels for hand to hand combat' as ammunition runs out in bitter Ukraine onslaught

6 March 2023, 09:13

Russian soldiers are using shovels
Russian soldiers are using shovels. Picture: Getty

By Kit Heren

Russian soldiers are fighting with shovels designed in the 19th century in hand-to-hand combat because of ammunition shortages, British spies have said.

Listen to this article

Loading audio...

The Russian forces are using a MPL-50 shovel, designed in 1869, UK security services said in an update on the war in Ukraine, citing Russian reservists.

The Ministry of Defence said in their intelligence briefing that close combat is increasing, likely because of Russian infantry not getting support from artillery due to a lack of munitions.

Spies said the MPL-50 shovel is "particularly mythologised" in Russia, and its design has changed little since it was first made 154 years ago.

A building burns after shelling in Bakhmut
A building burns after shelling in Bakhmut. Picture: Getty

They added that the fact that Russian soldiers are still using the shovel in combat is an indictment of the "brutal and low-tech" fighting that the war has descended to.

Meanwhile Russian forces are also using 60-year-old T-62 tanks because of heavy vehicle losses in the fighting, spies said.

Security forces said: "In late February 2023, Russian mobilised reservists described being ordered to assault a Ukrainian concrete strong point armed with only ‘firearms and shovels’. The ‘shovels’ are likely entrenching tools being employed for hand-to-hand combat.

"The lethality of the standard-issue MPL-50 entrenching tool is particularly mythologised in Russia. Little changed since it was designed in 1869, its continued use as a weapon highlights the brutal and low-tech fighting which has come to characterise much of the war.

Bakhmut has been under siege for months
Bakhmut has been under siege for months. Picture: Getty

"One of the reservists described being ‘neither physically nor psychologically’ prepared for the action.

"Recent evidence suggests an increase in close combat in Ukraine. This is probably a result of the Russian command continuing to insist on offensive action largely consisting of dismounted infantry, with less support from artillery fire because Russia is short of munitions."

The shovel has long been used as a weapon. Soviet special forces units [spetsnaz] threw them at enemies in combat, according to Viktor Suvorov in Spetsnaz: The Inside Story of the Soviet Special Forces.

Mr Suvorov wrote: "A soldier is taught to throw the spade as accurately as he would use a sword or a battle-axe. It is a wonderful weapon for throwing, a single, well-balanced object, whose 32-centimetre handle acts as a lever for throwing.

Spetsnaz troops have been using shovels in combat for decades
Spetsnaz troops have been using shovels in combat for decades. Picture: Getty

"As it spins in flight it gives the spade accuracy and thrust. It becomes a terrifying weapon.

"If it lands in a tree it is not so easy to pull out again. Far more serious is it if it hits someone's skull, although spetsnaz members usually do not aim at the enemy's face but at his back.

"He will rarely see the blade coming, before it lands in the back of his neck or between his shoulder blades, smashing the bones."

It comes in a time of particularly brutal fighting in Ukraine, as the war stretches into its second year. Russian forces have all but fully encircled the eastern city of Bakhmut after months of fighting.

Civilians evacuated from their houses by the help of NGOs in Donbas amid Russia-Ukraine war
Civilians evacuated from their houses by the help of NGOs in Donbas amid Russia-Ukraine war. Picture: Getty

The US-based Institute for the Study of War said on Sunday that "Ukrainian forces are likely conducting a limited tactical withdrawal in Bakhmut, although it is still too early to assess Ukrainian intentions concerning a complete withdrawal from the city."

Read more: Putin's foreign minister Sergei Lavrov ridiculed by crowd after telling event 'Ukraine launched war against Russia'

Read more: War in Ukraine 'will still be going in a year's time but Putin has already failed', says defence secretary Ben Wallace

Defence secretary Ben Wallace said that the war will stretch for at least another year, and that Vladimir Putin had already failed in his goal of conquering Ukraine quickly.

More Latest News

See more More Latest News

The young man was swallowed by a whale

Shocking moment whale swallows kayaker whole before spitting him back out

Deise Moura has been arrested on suspicion of killing her relatives with a poisonous Christmas cake

Woman accused of murder after 'Christmas cake poisoning' that killed three is found dead in prison cell

Ex-Met and West Mercia Police constable Mark Cranfield was found guilty of misconduct charges for pestering a revenge porn victim and keeping intimate video and naked images of her on his work phone

'I'm glad I got to see the pictures': Ex constable 'pestered' revenge porn victim and kept naked images of her on his phone

What if Ukraine were the UK? Could you accept surrendering a fifth of our country to Putin after so much sacrifice?

What if Ukraine were the UK? Could you accept surrendering a fifth of our country to Putin after so much sacrifice?

Tranyelle Harshman, 32, of Wyoming, left her fourth daughter fighting for her life after going on a rampage at their home on Monday.

'She loved those kids': Husband breaks silence to defend mother who killed her children

Brothers Mohammed Fahir Amaaz and Muhammad Amaad arriving at Liverpool Crown Court

Brothers deny assaulting police officers in viral video at Manchester Airport

The bodies of Andrew Searle and his wife Dawn were discovered by a neighbour

Mystery deepens over British couple found dead in France as wife 'made appointments' before deaths

Freezing rain will hit the UK.

Rare freezing rain that poses risks for planes and downs trees will hit UK in days, warns Met Office

Kanye West had his account suspended after posting "I AM A NAZI."

Kanye West has X account reactivated after deleting anti-Semitic rant

The voice of Huw Edwards has been removed from an episode of Dr Who

Disgraced BBC presenter Huw Edwards erased from episode of Dr Who

Elizabeth Line train drivers will go on strike

Elizabeth Line train drivers to stage series of strikes amid pay dispute

Relatives and supporters of Israeli hostages held in Gaza since the October 7, 2023 attacks, block Ayalon Highway in Tel Aviv during a protest calling for the release of all hostages

Hamas backs down over Israeli hostage deal threat amid fears ceasefire will collapse

The largest of the Chagos islands, Diego Garcia, the site of a joint military facility of the United Kingdom and the United States

US makes last-ditch intervention in Chagos islands negotiations amid concerns China will benefit from deal

Police at the scene after the car crashed into protesters

Afghan asylum seeker arrested after car ploughs into crowd leaving dozens of people injured including children

Exclusive
'It's not a witch hunt, we want accountability,' Barnaby Webber's mother has said.

'It's not a witch hunt,' says mother of Nottingham attack victim as she calls for 'accountability'

A woman was charged £50 to bring a water bottle on a Ryanair flight

Woman 'charged £50 to take a water bottle on Ryanair' flight