Algeria’s defence ministry stated on Sunday that its coastguard fired warning shots and then directly at a man on a jet ski who entered Algerian waters, resulting in an incident in which two people were reportedly killed. The event occurred on Tuesday when five men on jet skis entered Algerian waters near the Moroccan coastal resort of Saidia on the border with Algeria. A survivor named Mohamed Kissi explained the incident.
In a statement released on Sunday, Algeria’s defence ministry presented their version of events. According to the ministry, the incident began with multiple attempts to approach the jet ski, and warning shots were fired before aiming directly at it. The ministry also mentioned that another body, hit by gunshot wounds, was discovered on Wednesday.
Kissi, speaking in a video published by Morocco’s le360 news site, recounted that the group of friends was approached after dark by an Algerian government vessel. He claimed to have heard gunshots from the boat, resulting in the deaths of his brother Bilal, 29, and another individual named Abdelali Mchiouer, 40. Additionally, Smail Snabi, another member of their group, was reportedly detained by Algerian authorities.
Since 1994, the border between Algeria and Morocco has been closed, and the two countries have had no diplomatic relations since Algeria severed ties with Rabat in 2021. The Algerian statement acknowledged the occurrence of intense activity by drug smuggling gangs and organized crime in the maritime border area and justified the coastguard’s actions as a response to this situation.
Kissi disputed the Algerian account, stating that he did not hear any warning shots, only direct gunfire that killed his brother Bilal. He also confirmed that Abdelali Mchiouer was shot dead. The father of Mchiouer expressed the family’s desire to receive his body for a proper burial.
Moroccan authorities refrained from commenting on the case, considering it a judicial matter. The Moroccan prosecutor’s office initiated an investigation into the “violent incident.” The local media revealed that Mohamed and Bilal Kissi, along with Smail Snabi, hold dual Moroccan and French nationality.
The killing was condemned by Morocco’s National Human Rights Council, which called for the release of Snabi, claiming he was swiftly sentenced to 18 months in jail. France’s Foreign Ministry expressed awareness of the death of one of its citizens and the detention of another in Algeria. They assured their engagement with the families and authorities in both Morocco and Algeria.
Bilal Kissi’s body was discovered by Moroccan fishermen and laid to rest near the city of Oujda in eastern Morocco on Wednesday, as informed by his brother.
(Reporting by Hatem Maher, additional reporting by Ahmed Eljechtimi, Writing by Adam Makary,; Editing by Ros Russell)
Credit: The Star : News Feed
