2 Tourists on Jet Skis Are Shot Off Coast of Algeria

Moroccan survivor says coast guard fired at them after they got lost
By Newser Editors,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 1, 2023 2:37 PM CDT
2 Tourists on Jet Skis Are Shot Off Coast of Algeria
Stock image of a jet ski.   (Getty / Vladimir Timofeez)

Two jet skiers from Morocco were shot to death by Algerian troops after they got lost and strayed across the nations' maritime border, reports the BBC. A survivor says he was among four men who set out while on vacation before getting lost and running out of fuel, per the Guardian. "We knew we were in Algeria because a black Algerian dinghy came towards us [and those onboard] fired at us," said the man identified as Mohamed Kissi. He said his brother and another man were fatally shot, while a third man was arrested. Kissi said he managed to get away and was picked up by the Moroccan coast guard.

Morocco and Algeria do not have diplomatic relations, notes Al Jazeera, and the border between the two countries has been closed since 1994. Kissi said the men set out from the coastal resort of Saidia in Morocco. He said he and his brother have dual French-Moroccan citizenship, and the French foreign ministry has confirmed at least one death in the incident. He said the group did not try to flee the approaching Algerian dinghy but instead attempted talking to those aboard. The governments of Algeria and Morocco have not commented, and the details of what unfolded were still under investigation. (More Morocco stories.)

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