Despite initial beliefs that all border guards perished in the alleged attack, the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine (SBGSU) said on Saturday, per The Independent: "We [have a] strong belief that all Ukrainian defenders of Zmiinyi (Snake) Island may be alive."
In a post shared to the SBGSU Facebook page, officials wrote: "After receiving information about their possible location, the [border guard service] together with the Armed Forces of Ukraine are conducting work on identifying our soldiers."
"Preliminary information that border guards may be dead came before the defenders lost contact," the post continued, adding: "We sincerely hope that the boys will return home as soon as possible, and the information received at the time of the attack on the death will not be confirmed. Glory to Ukrainian defenders."
In another update reported by BBC News, Russia's account of the story differs dramatically from what has been reported elsewhere.
BBC News states that Moscow has said there were 82 Ukrainian soldiers on the island at the time, with all of them surrendering voluntarily. Russian officials added that there was never any mention of a sea or land strike and there were no casualties.
ORIGINAL Ukraine honors 13 soldiers who died defending tiny island and allegedly told Russian warship: 'Go f*** yourself'Ukraine has honored 13 soldiers who died bravely defending a tiny island in the Black Sea, before defiantly telling a Russian warship: "Go f*** yourself."
As reported by BBC News, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed on Thursday that all 13 border guards "died heroically". He also added that each of the guards would be awarded the posthumous title of "Hero of Ukraine".
"On our Zmiinyi Island, defending it to the last, all the border guards died heroically but did not give up," Zelensky said.
Ukrainian officials state that the guards were killed by sea and air strikes - but Russia has reportedly denied the claims, saying that the soldiers all surrendered.
According to a purported and unverified audio exchange - which has been shared by Ukrainian government officials
- a Russian soldier aboard a vessel says: "This is a military warship. This is a Russian warship.
"I propose you lay down your weapons and surrender to avoid bloodshed and unnecessary victims. Otherwise, you will be bombed."
CNN and BBC News report that a Ukrainian solder on the island responded by saying: "Russian warship, go f*** yourself."
Zmiinyi Island - known as Snake Island - is located in the Black Sea approximately 30 miles (48 kilometers) off Ukraine's southern coast. Its total land area measures less than one-tenth of a square mile, per Insider.
Back in August of 2021, President Zelensky chose to conduct free-ranging interviews with Ukrainian media from the island in an effort to spotlight the upcoming Crimea Platform summit.
When asked why he chose Zmiinyi Island as the location, he said that the island is highly symbolic, adding: "This island, like the rest of our territory, is Ukrainian land, and we will defend it with all our might."
Russia launched its "special military operation" against Ukraine on Thursday - sending forces by sea, land, and air. President Zelensky stated that 137 Ukrainian soldiers were killed on that first day.
The Washington Post has reported that Ukrainian civilians have now been signing up to defend the nation, after heeding calls from the government to help fight in any way they can.
On Saturday morning, Zelensky shared a video of himself in the streets of Kyiv, and once again vowed to continue defending the country.
"I am here. We are not putting down arms. We will be defending our country, because our weapon is truth, and our truth is that this is our land, our country, our children, and we will defend all of this," he said. "That is it. That's all I wanted to tell you. Glory to Ukraine."