The men were reportedly shot dead after getting lost on their jet skis (Stock picture: Getty Images)
Two tourists have reportedly been shot dead by the Algerian coastguard after they strayed into hostile waters on jet skis.
The four French-Moroccan men had set off from the Moroccan resort of Saidia before getting lost and crossing the border into Algeria, according to one of the survivors.
Mohammed Kissi said they were shot at by the Algerian coastguard, leaving his brother, Bilal Kissi, and friend dead and another friend injured.
The injured man was arrested and taken away by the coastguard, while Mr Kissi was picked up by the Moroccan Navy.
Morocco and Algeria have a long history of tensions as they continue to dispute ownership of Western Sahara.
Footage of one of the bodies floating in the water was posted online by a fisherman, leading to anger among Moroccans over the apparently unprovoked killings.
Mr Kissi told local media: ‘We got lost but we kept going until we found ourselves in Algeria,’ adding the group also ran out of fuel.
The group set off from the Moroccan resort town of Saidia (Picture: Google Maps)
‘We knew we were in Algeria because a black Algerian dinghy came towards us,’ he said, adding those onboard the dinghy then began firing at the group.
‘Thank God I wasn’t hit but they killed my brother and my friend.’
He said five bullets hit the two men who died and one hit the friend who survived.
Mr Kissi denied that the group had attempted to escape when they were seen by the coastguard, and said his brother had tried to talk to the officials before being shot, the BBC reported.
Mr Kissi told local media he began swimming back to Saidia and was eventually picked up by the Moroccan navy.
The brothers’ cousin, actor Abdelkarim Kissi, has urged Moroccan authorities to take the case to the international courts.
Writing on social media he said: ‘They killed Bilal Kissi my little cousin.
‘His only fault was crossing the Algerian territorial waters, he was on vacation with his friends.’
The friend arrested by the coastguard, named as Smail Snabe, reportedly appeared before a prosecutor in Algeria on Wednesday but no details were given.
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The second man who died has been named as Abdelali Merchouer. His body is still in Algeria, reports Moroccan news site Le360.
A Moroccan government spokesman told AFP it would not comment on the shooting, saying it was ‘a matter for the judiciary’.
There has been no comment yet from Algeria.
The border between Algeria and Morocco closed in 1994, but tensions have existed between the two nations since they gained independence from France and Spain in the 1950s and 60s.
Two years ago Algeria broke off all diplomatic relations with Morocco over what it called ‘hostile acts’ from its neighbour. The Moroccan government denied such allegations.
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Two men died, one was arrested and one escaped after the group were said to have strayed into Algerian waters.Â
