Last Thursday, the audio of the last words of 13 Ukrainian soldiers who defended the Serpent Island, in the Black Sea, from a Russian offensive, went viral. The Ukrainian detachment refused to surrender, despite threats from the Russian navy, which even warned them that if they did not lay down their arms, they would be bombed. “Russian warship, go to hell,” was the response of the Ukrainian officer who spoke just before they were attacked.
The Ukrainian authorities gave them up for dead and President Zelenski said that the soldiers had died “heroically”. However, according to The Washington Postnow Ukraine has admitted that they could be alive, since Russian media indicate that they were taken as prisoners to Sevastopol, on the Crimean peninsula. The American daily cites a statement posted on Facebook by the Ukrainian State Border Guard Service.
According to this statement, on Thursday they were attacked both by sea and by air and communication with the detachment was lost, while all the infrastructure they defended on the islet was destroyed and the Russians took control of the enclave. This led to the assumption that they had perished in the attack.
Ukrainian officials now say they “have a strong conviction that they could be alive” and are trying to determine what really happened to the guards who barricaded themselves in and if any were killed in the attack.
After the resistance of the Ukrainian soldiers to the Russian attack went viralthe Russian agency Tass released a dozen images in which soldiers are allegedly seen alive being evacuated from the island. The state agency, controlled by the Kremlin, assures that the soldiers surrendered during the offensive.
www.eldiario.es