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Ukrainians who told Russian warship to ‘f*** yourself’ still in jail

Snake Island became a powerful symbol of Ukraine’s resistance. But the prisoners’ families say they feel forgotten

By Maxim Kamenev
Ukrainians who told Russian warship to ‘f*** yourself’ still in jail
Snake Island, in the Black Sea, is 30km off Ukraine's border with Romania
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The words “Russian warship, go fuck yourself” quickly became a symbol of Ukrainian resistance in the early days of the invasion.

It was the final message from a border guard on Ukraine’s besieged Snake Island to a Russian missile cruiser, and it reverberated around the world. But confusion reigned over what had happened to the Ukrainian personnel serving on the Black Sea island, which was attacked and captured by the Russian military on 24 February – the first full day of the invasion.

At first, it was reported that all 13 of the Ukrainian border guards stationed on the island had been killed.

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Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0