Jet skiing tourists shot dead after crossing Algeria border

Two French tourists have reportedly been shot dead after they went jet skiing but turned the wrong way crossing an international border.

Jet skiing tourists shot dead after crossing Algeria border. Image: Library /Picture: istock

Two tourists jet skiing in Morocco were reportedly shot dead by the Algerian coastguard when they strayed across the maritime border between two Mediterranean countries.

Bill Kissi and Abdelali Merchouer, both French-Moroccan dual nationals, came under fire after taking a wrong turn off the beach resort of Saidia on Morocco’s northeast tip, the Le360 Moroccan news website said, citing a witness.

The jet skiers are said to have strayed across the maritime border between Saidia in Morocco, in the background, and Marsa ben M'hidi in Algeria in the foreground. The border is officially closed since 1994. Picture: Getty.

A third man, Smail Snabe, also French-Moroccan, was arrested by the Algerian coastguard and appeared before a prosecutor on Wednesday.

The local public prosecutor’s office in Morocco has ordered the opening of an investigation.

Paris has so far confirmed one of its national was killed in the incident off the coast of North Africa while another is in jail in Algeria.

There were four men in the group on Tuesday, all riding jet skis.

“We got lost but we kept going until we found ourselves in Algeria,” Mohamed Kissi, the brother of the young man who died, was quoted as saying by the Moroccan website Al Omk.

“We knew we were in Algeria because a black Algerian dinghy came towards us” and those on board “fired at us”, he said.

From left to right: Mohamed Kissi, Abdelali Mchiouer, Bilal Kissi and Smaïl Snabe. Picture: Le360.

“Thank God I wasn’t hit, but they killed my brother and my friend. They arrested my other friend,” he added.

“Five bullets hit my brother and my friend. My other friend was hit by a bullet,” Mr Kissi was quoted as saying.

“We got lost and we were out of fuel,” he said, adding that he was picked up by the Moroccan navy who took him back to the Saidia marina.

Mourners attend the funeral of Bilal Kissi, shot dead by the Algerian coastguard when he and a fellow jet skier strayed across the maritime border between Algeria and Morocco. (Photo by AFP)

The incident comes against a backdrop of increased tensions between Algeria and Morocco exacerbated by their antagonism over the disputed territory of Western Sahara.

The border between the North African nations has been closed since 1994, and Algiers.

The foreign ministry in has Paris reported only one death without providing the circumstances or location, while saying another of its citizens was “jailed in Algeria” in “an incident involving several of our nationals”.

Paris did not release the identity of the person it said had been killed.

The French foreign ministry said its “crisis support centre and our embassies in Morocco and Algeria are in close contact with our fellow citizens’ families, to whom we are offering every support,” the ministry added.