A Russian soldier fatally shot four of his fellow troops r, according to reports.

Independent outlet Mediazona said that Corporal Nikita Posmetukhov killed the soldiers in a dugout using an assault rifle.

He has reportedly been sentenced to life in prison for the incident which took place in November 2023.

Corporal Posmetukhov had reportedly become angry with his captain who had disciplined him and threatened to transfer him to an assault unit.

Reports say that, before the incident, Corporal Posmetukhov had been out drinking with his colleagues.

Corporal Posmetukhov's captain was not one of the soldiers killed during the shooting, according to Mediazona.

Three of those killed were reportedly asleep at the time.

The soldier was convicted of killing two or more people and violence against a superior during an armed conflict.

Mediazona said the case was heard behind closed doors in 's Southern Military District but that it had obtained a document detailing the alleged incident.

claims more than 850,000 Russian troops have been killed or wounded since almost three years ago.

Russia's so-called 'meat-grinder' tactics to overwhelm Ukrainian positions have led to a significant number of casualties.

Ukrainian partisans have , with commanders increasingly refusing to carry out "suicidal attacks".

The Crimean partisan group Atesh said: "The split deepens, and the closer to the front, the stronger.

"In the , for example, some commanders are really trying to avoid sending troops for an assault because due to the losses they have suffered, they no longer have anyone to staff their units.

"Of course, they fail to do this, so the soldiers at their level engage in sabotage - destroying their equipment in order to avoid following orders."

Ukraine claims December and January were the two bloodiest months of the entire conflict for Russia, with almost 100,000 losses suffered.

All of the figures provided by Ukraine are unverified.