A senior Russian commander was rumoured to have died in hospital after his own troops ran over him with a tank, causing fatal wounds to his legs.

Sky News reporter Deborah Haynes gave the name of the commander as Colonel Yuri Medvedev, commander of 37 Motor Rifle Brigade.

In an initial report, she said her source, who she names as a western official, told her that the Colonel was set upon by his disheartened men as a reaction to the severe losses the unit had suffered in Ukraine.

Deborah initially reported that the commander died in hospital but in a recent tweet, she said she is getting reports that he survived but remains in critical condition in a hospital in Belarus.