Why Ukraine's bloodiest battle looked like a scene from World War I

• The battle for Bakhmut, Ukraine, has been compared to World War I.
• The comparison is because both had horrific death tolls, and heavy use of trenches.
• A US veteran who fought in Bakhmut said the battlefield was shaped by ubiquitous drones.

Ukraine's most horrific battle — for the city of Bakhmut — looks like something from another era; specifically that of World War I.

Dirt, severed limbs, soldiers huddled in trenches under constant artillery fire — a far cry from most modern conflicts.

Ironically, it is the modern technology that explains why the fighting was like this, a US Army veteran fighting in Ukraine said.