Published Apr 6, 2022, 1:20pm|Updated Apr 6, 2022, 3:22pm
Ukrainian soldiers walk through the Exclusion Zone for the first time since recapturing Chernobyl (Picture: AP)

Ukrainian soldiers have been pictured walking through Chernobyl for the first time since it was recaptured from Russia.

The power plant – the site of the world’s worst nuclear disaster – and the northern Pripyat region were taken over by Putin’s forces within days of the invasion in February.

But after losing thousands of soldiers during weeks of intense fighting, Moscow ordered a retreat to the east, prompting the liberation of regions across Ukraine.  

Pictures from inside Chernobyl’s infamous Exclusion Zone now show a scene a devastation, with bombed bridges and abandoned tanks in the eerie wasteland.

New drone footage also appears to confirm reports that Russians foolishly dug trenches in the Red Forest next to the decommissioned plant.

The forest received some of the highest radiation doses when the reactor exploded in 1986, and it is still highly radioactive 36 years later.

Dozens of Russians soldiers reportedly fell ill with ‘acute radiation sickness’ after digging into the contaminated soil.

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Map shows where Russian soldiers dug trenches near the Chernobyl nuclear plant (Picture: Metro.co.uk)
Chernobyl was taken over by Russian troops within the first few days of the invasion (Picture: AP)
Experts feared harmful radiation would be released during the fighting in Chernobyl (Picture: AP)

An employee at the Ukrainian state agency overseeing the Exclusion Zone said ‘irradiated’ Russians were taken away by the bus load to a clinic in neighbouring Belarus for treatment.

Reacting with glee at the time, Chernobyl tour guide Yaroslav Yemelianenko tweeted: ‘Another batch of Russian irradiated terrorists who seized the Chernobyl zone was brought to the Belarusian Radiation Medicine Center in Gomel today.

‘Have you dug trenches in the Red Forest, b*****s? Now live with it for the rest of your short life.’

A bus blocks a street in the eerie Chernobyl Exclusion Zone (Picture: AP)
Russians abandoned their tanks in Chernobyl (Picture: AP)
A bridge between the village of Dytiatky and Chernobyl was destroyed by Russian soldiers (Picture: AP)

The Russian troops ‘panicked at the first sign of illness,’ which ‘showed up very quickly,’ and began to prepare to leave, energy operator Energoatom said.

Ukraine spent weeks expressing safety concerns about Chernobyl and demanded the withdrawal of Russian troops, whose presence prevented the rotation of the plant’s workers.

The plant’s Ukrainian staff have continued to oversee the safe storage of spent nuclear fuel and supervise the concrete-encased remains of the exploded reactor.

Russia-Ukraine war: Everything you need to know

Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine began on February 24, the country has suffered widespread damages and loss of life amid a major bombing campaign.

Millions of people have fled the country, with thousands of British people opening up their homes to Ukrainian refugees.

During the course of the war, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has remained in Kyiv, despite the Ukrainian capital being subjected to a barrage of bombing.

Zelensky has continuously pushed for aid and support from world leaders, as well as pressing for fast-tracked NATO membership.

Meanwhile, Russia's President Vladimir Putin has been widely condemned for his attack on Ukraine.

His actions have been met by harsh economic sanctions, bans from competing in major sporting events, and countries moving away from using Russian oil.