Burning Man: Police investigating death during heavy rain - BBC

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By David Willis & Kathryn Armstrong

BBC News, Burning Man in Nevada & London

An investigation has been launched into the death of a person during torrential rain at the Burning Man festival in the US state of Nevada.

Thousands of people remain stranded at the event after the bad weather turned the ground to deep, slippery mud.

Revellers have been told to shelter in place and conserve their food, while roads in and out of the event are closed as vehicles can barely move.

Burning Man is held in the Black Rock Desert, which is usually dry and dusty.

In a statement on Saturday, the Pershing County Sheriff's Office said it is "currently investigating a death which occurred during this rain event" but did not give any further details on the circumstances. The person's family had been notified, the statement added.

Some people have tried to drive out of the festival, but the sheriff's office said this had made the muddy ground even worse.

"There was a person parked next to me who tried to leave and she got six inches before giving up digging her wheels into the mud," USA Today reporter Trevor Hughes, who is at the festival, told the BBC.

He said that the ground was so precarious, it had taken him two hours to walk just two miles (3km).

"[The ground] is basically this alkali dust that when dry, is hard as concrete but you get a little rain and it turns into this slippery, muddy mess," Hughes said.

"The water has nowhere to go - it can't soak in and it can't run off. So it just sits there."

More rain is expected and the authorities have said that it could be several days before the ground dries up enough for people to leave.

For this reason, they have been told to conserve their food, water and fuel.

The festival's toilets are also out of use, revellers say, because the service vehicles cannot drive on the mud to empty them.

More than 70,000 people had arrived at the site before it was closed on Saturday but the exact number of those still there is unclear.

Some have managed to leave the site, however. American DJ Diplo wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that he and comedian Chris Rock walked 5miles (8km) to a road, where they were given a lift by fans.

Others have also had to rely on strangers. Ashley Smith, who lives in London, said he had to get out in order to make it back to the UK for work on Monday.

Mr Smith told the BBC that he and his friends, who were running out of supplies, left a lot of their gear and walked to the road, where they managed to catch lifts with people all the way back to San Francisco. The whole journey took them 14 hours.

The event's organisers have arranged for buses to pick people up from the road and take them to the city of Reno, more than 100 miles away.

The annual nine-day festival is one of America's most well-known arts and culture events. Visitors create a temporary city in the middle of the desert, and are expected to be largely self-sufficient while they are there.

"We have come here knowing this is a place where we bring everything we need to survive," said Burning Man in a statement.

"It is because of this that we are all well-prepared for a weather event like this."

But the rain has dampened the spirits of some.

"For me and my husband this is an escape from hard things and this is kinda hard. So I am sad," Chelsea Gold told the BBC.

Burning Man usually features giant interactive art installations and a huge wooden man that is burnt at the end of the nine days - but many of the events have been called off.

Nonetheless, many were trying to make the best of the situation, dancing in the mud to techno music.

"We're taking it as an opportunity to hang out and spend more time with our new friends and old friends in the camp," another reveller, Josiah Roe said.

Burning Man was founded in June 1986 and was first held in Nevada's Black Rock Desert in 1990.

Tickets can be very hard to get and festival-goers sometimes interview to get into popular camps and have to prove their commitment to its ideals.

Some groups spend the entire year planning their camp, artwork and theme.

But this year there had been worries about the weather and tickets were changing hands on the secondary market at below market rate.

Additional reporting by James Clayton in San Francisco and Azadeh Moshiri.

Related Topics

• Nevada
• California

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2023-09-03 09:11:01Z
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Russia-Ukraine war live: two injured in Odesa as Moscow launches drone attack on port infrastructure - The Guardian

From 2h ago

Russia launched a three-and-a-half hour drone attack on the southern parts of the Odesa region early on Sunday, hitting Danube River port infrastructure and injuring at least two people, Kyiv said.

Ukraine’s air defence systems shot down 22 of the 25 Iranian-made Shahed drones that Russia launched on Odesa in the early Sunday hours, Reuters reports Ukraine’s air force as saying on Telegram.

Ukraine’s south military command said on social media at least two civilians were injured in the attack on what it said was the “civil infrastructure of the Danube”.

The Danube has become Ukraine’s main route for exporting grain since the collapse of a UN-brokered deal in July that had allowed Kyiv to ship its grain via the Black Sea.

There was no detail on which port facility was hit. The military said a fire that resulted from the attack at the facility was quickly extinguished.

Some Ukrainian media reported blasts in the Reni port, one of the two major ports on the Danube that Ukraine operates. There was no immediate comment from Russia.

The Ukrainian president’s chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, has commented on the reported Russian drone attack in the Odesa region that hit Danube River port infrastructure (see earlier post at 07.14).

He wrote on Telegram:

Russian terrorists continue to attack port infrastructure in the hope of provoking a food crisis and famine in the world.

Yermak also posted a photo of a firefighter directing water at the burning ruins of concrete structures, Reuters reports.

Some Ukrainian media reported blasts in the Reni port, one of the two major ports on the Danube that Ukraine operates, but these claims have not yet been independently verified.

The Associated Press has some interesting analysis on the state of the war:

The Ukrainian military now considers the battles in the north-east, specifically near the town of Kupiansk, in the northern Kharkiv region, and in the forests near Lyman, to be Russia’s main offensive.

At the same time, Ukraine’s main offensive operations are focused in the south, where they are inching toward the shores of the Sea of Azov in an apparent bid to cut the land corridor to the Crimean Peninsula, which Russia seized in 2014. Doing this would split in two the Russian-occupied land in southern Ukraine, undermining Moscow’s supply lines.

The deputy defence minister Hanna Maliar urged observers to measure Ukrainian progress not in kilometres or metres but “by the very fact that we are successful in moving forward in such conditions”.

While aiming to keep Ukrainian troops busy along the mostly static north-east front, Russia has also had time to reinforce its defences in the south, including laying widespread mines, Ukrainian officials said. The deep fortifications have slowed Kyiv’s advances in that direction.

Meanwhile, the Ukrainians must deal with limitations in manpower, air power and artillery. And the looming autumn rainy season adds even greater urgency to an already difficult battle. The muddy ground will hinder Kyiv’s infantry and heavy machinery.

In the south, Ukrainian forces have recently had more success breaking through Russian lines. Since the start of the counteroffensive, Ukraine has advanced 7km (4.3 miles) in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, overcoming dense Russian fortifications last week to retake the village of Robotyne – Ukraine’s first tactically significant victory in that part of the country.

It is a far cry from the sweeping territorial gains western allies hoped for. But winning control of the village brings Ukrainian forces one step closer to the town of Tokmak, about 30km away, an important Russian-occupied rail hub that would be a major strategic gain.

About 280,000 people have signed up so far this year for professional service with Russia’s military, the deputy chair of the Russian Security Council, the former president Dmitry Medvedev, said on Sunday.

“According to the ministry of defence, since 1 January, about 280,000 people have been accepted into the ranks of the armed forces on a contract basis,” including reservists, state news agency Tass quoted Medvedev as saying.

Last year, Russia announced a plan to expand its combat personnel by more than 30% to 1.5 million, an ambitious task made harder by its heavy but undisclosed casualties in Moscow’s war against Ukraine.

Some Russian lawmakers suggested Russia needs a professional army 7 million strong to ensure the country’s security – a move that would require a huge budget allowance.

Vladimir Putin ordered a “partial mobilisation” of 300,000 reservists in September 2022, prompting hundreds of thousands of others to flee Russia to avoid being sent to fight.

Hello everyone, this is Yohannes Lowe. I’ll be running the blog until 4pm (UK time). Please do feel free to get in touch on Twitter if you have any story tips.

Russia is exploiting foreign nationals in its effort to acquire more personnel for its war effort in the face of mounting casualties and probably views millions of migrants from central Asia as potential recruits, according to the UK Ministry of Defence.

It said in its latest intelligence update that since late June Russia had been appealing to citizens of neighbouring countries with recruitment advertisements for people to fight in Ukraine.

Online ads had been seen in Armenia and Kazakhstan offering 495,000 roubles (about £4,100/$5,100) in initial payments and salaries from 190,000 roubles (about £1,500/$2,000), the ministry said. There had also been recruitment efforts in Kazakhstan’s northern Qostanai region, appealing to the ethnic Russian population.

Since at least May, Russia had approached central Asian migrants to fight in Ukraine with promises of fast-track citizenship and salaries of up to US$4,160, the ministry said in its update, posted on X/Twitter.

“Uzbek migrant builders in Mariupol have reportedly had their passports confiscated upon arrival and been coerced to join the Russian military.”

The ministry also said:

There are at least six million migrants from central Asia in Russia, which the Kremlin likely sees as potential recruits.

Russia likely wishes to avoid further unpopular domestic mobilisation measures in the run-up to the 2024 presidential elections. Exploiting foreign nationals allows the Kremlin to acquire additional personnel for its war effort in the face of mounting casualties.

Here are some of the latest images coming in from Ukraine over news agency wires.

Traffic on the main bridge linking the Russian mainland with the Crimean peninsula resumed after a brief suspension early on Sunday, the Russian-installed operator of the bridge said on Telegram.

The administration did not disclose the reason for the suspension, Reuters reports.

Russia’s defence ministry said early on Saturday that its forces had destroyed an unmanned Ukrainian boat and three naval drones being used in an attempt to attack the Crimea bridge.

The bridge has been a target of increased air and sea drone attacks in recent months.

Russia launched a three-and-a-half hour drone attack on the southern parts of the Odesa region early on Sunday, hitting Danube River port infrastructure and injuring at least two people, Kyiv said.

Ukraine’s air defence systems shot down 22 of the 25 Iranian-made Shahed drones that Russia launched on Odesa in the early Sunday hours, Reuters reports Ukraine’s air force as saying on Telegram.

Ukraine’s south military command said on social media at least two civilians were injured in the attack on what it said was the “civil infrastructure of the Danube”.

The Danube has become Ukraine’s main route for exporting grain since the collapse of a UN-brokered deal in July that had allowed Kyiv to ship its grain via the Black Sea.

There was no detail on which port facility was hit. The military said a fire that resulted from the attack at the facility was quickly extinguished.

Some Ukrainian media reported blasts in the Reni port, one of the two major ports on the Danube that Ukraine operates. There was no immediate comment from Russia.

Welcome back to our live coverage of Russia’s war in Ukraine. This is Adam Fulton and here’s a snapshot of the latest news to bring you up to speed.

Russia launched an attack with 25 drones on the Odesa region’s south early on Sunday, hitting port infrastructure on the Danube River and injuring at least two people, Kyiv said.

Ukraine’s air defence systems shot down 22 of the Iranian-made Shahed drones that Russia launched in the three-and-a-half hour attack.

More on that story shortly. In other key developments:

• Ukrainian forces have decisively breached Russia’s first defensive line near Zaporizhzhia after weeks of painstaking mine clearance, and expect faster gains as they press the weaker second line, the general leading the southern counteroffensive has told the Observer. Brig Gen Oleksandr Tarnavskiy estimated Russia had devoted 60% of its time and resources into building the first defensive line and only 20% each into the second and third lines because Moscow had not expected Ukrainian forces to get through.

• Ukrainian forces were “on the move”, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said, as the US acknowledged the “notable progress” of the counteroffensive over the past few days. Zelenskiy said on Telegram: “Despite everything and no matter what anyone says, we are advancing, and that is the most important thing.”

• A Ukrainian court ordered tycoon Ihor Kolomoisky to be held in custody for two months on suspicion of fraud and money laundering on Saturday. The detention of Kolomoisky, who is under US sanctions and is a one-time supporter of Zelenskiy, comes as Kyiv is trying to signal progress in a corruption crackdown.

• The Nobel Foundation has reversed its decision to invite ambassadors from Russia and Belarus to this year’s Nobel award ceremony in Stockholm, after the move sparked anger in Sweden and abroad. The foundation said on Saturday that it had chosen “to repeat last year’s exception to regular practice – that is, to not invite the ambassadors of Russia, Belarus and Iran”.

• Russia has taken down three Ukrainian drones over the Belgorod region, the Russian defence ministry said on Saturday, while the regional governor said one man had been killed in a Ukrainian rocket strike on a village close to the border. Separately, the governors of the nearby frontier regions of Bryansk and Kursk said a string of border villages had come under fire from Ukraine, and a woman had been wounded in the Kursk region.

• Zelenskiy said on Saturday that two more ships had passed through a “temporary” Black Sea shipping corridor established after Russia withdrew from a UN-backed grain export deal in July. On Friday officials said two vessels had cleared the corridor, bringing to four the number that have used it.

• The Russian president, Vladimir Putin, is to host his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, for talks on Monday, the Kremlin has announced. It comes just over six weeks after Moscow broke off the deal brokered by Ankara and the UN that allowed Ukrainian grain to reach world markets.

• Russia risks dividing its forces as it seeks to prevent a Ukrainian breakthrough in Ukraine’s south, the UK Ministry of Defence said. It said Ukrainian forces continued to take offensive action on the Orikhiv axis in southern Ukraine, with units reaching the first Russian main defensive line.

• Russia’s defence ministry said its forces destroyed an unmanned Ukrainian boat and three naval drones being used in an attempt to attack the bridge linking the Crimean peninsula to the Russian mainland. The vessel had been “spotted and destroyed in time off the Black Sea coast”, it said early on Saturday.

• Elections are under way in Russian-controlled provinces of Ukraine as part of a move to cement Moscow’s authorities in its “new territories” despite the ongoing conflict. Russia does not fully control any of the four regions where the votes are being held – Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson.

• The largest refugee centre established to home Ukrainians fleeing the Russian invasion has been closed by Poland after it said the sanctuary was no longer required, since most had now found homes elsewhere.

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2023-09-03 06:22:59Z
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Nobel Foundation reverses decision to invite Russian ambassador to awards - The Guardian

The Nobel Foundation has reversed its decision to invite ambassadors from Russia and Belarus to this year’s Nobel awards ceremony in Stockholm after the invitation sparked anger.

In 2022, the Nobel Foundation, which organises the annual Nobel prize ceremony and banquet in Stockholm, decided not to invite the Russian and Belarusian ambassadors to the awards event because of the war in Ukraine.

It made the same decision regarding the Iranian envoy over the country’s crackdown on protests.

The Swedish foundation said on Thursday that it was returning to its previous practice of inviting ambassadors from all countries represented in Sweden. This sparked a wave of angry reactions, with several Swedish politicians saying they would boycott this year’s Nobel prize ceremony.

On Saturday the foundation said Thursday’s decision had been based on a belief “that it is important and right to reach out as widely as possible with the values and messages that the Nobel prize stands for”. It noted, however, that the strong reactions “completely overshadowed this message”.

“We, therefore, choose to repeat last year’s exception to regular practice – that is, to not invite the ambassadors of Russia, Belarus and Iran to the Nobel prize award ceremony in Stockholm.”

Last year, the Norwegian Nobel Institute still invited all ambassadors to the peace prize ceremony it organises in Oslo, and the foundation said this would be the case again.

The decision to once again invite the Russian and Belarusian representatives sparked ire in Sweden and abroad, Agence-France Presse reported.

The Ukrainian foreign ministry spokesperson, Oleg Nikolenko, wrote on Facebook that the foundation should support efforts to isolate Russia and Belarus as “millions of Ukrainians suffer from an unprovoked war and the Russian regime is not punished for its crimes”.

The Swedish prime minister, Ulf Kristersson, also said he disagreed with the foundation’s decision. “I would not have done it if I were handling invites to an award ceremony and I understand that it upsets many people in both Sweden and Ukraine,” he told AFP.

Several prominent Swedish politicians, including the leaders of the centre, green, left and liberal parties, said they would boycott the event over the Russian ambassador’s presence.

The glitzy event is held each year in Stockholm on 10 December, the anniversary of the death in 1896 of the award’s founder, Alfred Nobel, when laureates in the fields of medicine, physics, chemistry, literature and economics receive their awards from King Carl XVI Gustaf.

This year’s Nobel prize winners will be announced in early October. .

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2023-09-02 16:57:00Z
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Israel: Police clash with Eritrean asylum seekers - BBC

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By Yolande Knell

BBC News, Jerusalem

Dozens of people have been injured, including some from live gunfire, during clashes between Eritrean asylum seekers and Israeli police in Tel Aviv.

Stun grenades, tear gas and sponge-tipped bullets were used against hundreds of protesters.

The unrest was sparked after activists opposed to the Eritrean government said they asked Israeli authorities to cancel an embassy event on Saturday.

But protesters also clashed with supporters of the Eritrean regime.

An investigation has been opened into whether the use of live fire was within the law, with evidence being gathered at the scene.

The divisions within Eritrea over the rule of President Isaias Afwerki have spilled over into the diaspora, and this is the latest outbreak of violence in recent weeks.

According to Israeli news reports, the demonstrators marched towards a venue where the event was due to take place. They were initially held back by police barricades but later managed to break through them.

Residents said the streets of central Tel Aviv sounded like a war zone as police helicopters buzzed overhead and Israeli officers fired live rounds into the air.

Protesters fought with police, damaged cars and smashed the windows of nearby businesses.

A statement by Israeli police said that officers used their guns as they felt their lives were in danger. It added that 27 were injured.

Photos from inside the hall that had been hired by Eritrean diplomats for the event showed tables and chairs overturned after angry demonstrators broke in.

Videos shared on social media also showed street battles between Eritreans who support the regime in their home country, and those who oppose it. Israeli police said they tried to separate the two sides.

In a message put out on X, previously known as Twitter, the police asked uninvolved members of the public to stay away from the scene.

• Eritrea country profile

Earlier this week, police said at a news conference that different Eritrean factions had agreed to rally in two separate locations this Saturday.

Supporters of the government in Asmara were supposed to meet close to the embassy venue. Opponents were due to protest at the old central bus station, which is a short distance away.

However, the two sides did not stick to their commitments, police said.

An unnamed senior police source was quoted by the Haaretz newspaper as saying: "We were very surprised by the level of violence, scenes you only see in the West Bank."

Hundreds of officers have since been deployed in the area, according to the police.

Reuters

In the middle of the afternoon, the Magen David Adom emergency medical service said it had treated 114 wounded people. Most had minor injuries, including 30 police officers - most of whom were badly bruised. Eight were in a serious condition and 13 in a moderate condition.

There have been previous cases of violence between different factions of Eritrean asylum seekers.

In 2019, one asylum seeker who was a regime supporter was fatally stabbed in south Tel Aviv amid a turf war - between those for and against the Eritrean government - in poorer neighbourhoods where many people from the community live.

It is estimated that there are about 18,000 asylum seekers from Eritrea in Israel, most of whom arrived illegally years ago by crossing Egypt's Sinai Peninsula. They said they fled danger, persecution and compulsory military conscription in one of the world's most repressive countries.

Although Eritreans supporting the regime would not appear to be in need of international protection as refugees, the authorities in Israel have not made differentiations between asylum seekers based on their political affiliations, according to local media.

As Eritrea marks 30 years of independence from Ethiopia, festivals have been held by its diaspora.

But as well as Israel, some in Europe and North America have been marred by protests and outbreaks of violence - last month a three-day Eritrean cultural festival in Toronto, Canada was cancelled after supporters and opponents of Eritrea's regime clashed.

Related Topics

• Middle East
• Israel
• Refugees and asylum seekers
• Eritrea

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2023-09-02 18:46:39Z
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Dozens of people injured in clashes between rival Eritrean groups in Israel - Al Jazeera English

Supporters and critics of Eritrean government engage in violent clashes at a pro-government event in Tel Aviv.

More than 100 people have been injured in clashes between rival groups of protesters from Eritrea in the Israeli city of Tel Aviv with the police firing warning shots in the air to disperse the demonstrators.

Fighting broke out on Saturday after hundreds of Eritreans critical of their government approached a venue where a pro-government event was being held.

Protesters broke through police barriers and smashed windows of police and other cars as well as windows of nearby stores, the Haaretz newspaper reported. They were also able to enter the venue near the Eritrean embassy and smash up chairs and tables.

Magen David Adom, Israel’s emergency medical service, said it treated 114 people, eight of whom were in serious condition.

Footage on social media showed Eritrean government supporters beating anti-government protesters with clubs. Reuters journalists saw men with head wounds and bloodied arms, some lying on the ground of a children’s playground.

Al Jazeera’s Paul Brennan, reporting from occupied East Jerusalem, said the police did not anticipate the intensity of the violence that broke out.

“The demonstrators were able to break through the barriers pretty rapidly. The police had to respond with tear gas, stun grenades. There were running battles between the demonstrators and the police in riot equipment,” he said.

“At least 30 police officers were injured in the clashes,” Brennan said, adding that there are questions if the police could have better responded.

Police said they arrested 39 suspects “who assaulted police and threw stones” at officers. Some of them were carrying weapons, tear gas and an electrical stun gun, officers said.

Police added they were reinforcing their personnel in the area as fighting between Eritreans and police and between supporters and opponents of Eritrea’s government was reported to be continuing elsewhere in south Tel Aviv.

President Isaias Afwerki, 77, has ruled Eritrea since it gained independence in 1991. Asmara has never held elections. Political parties are banned, and freedom of expression and the press are heavily restricted.

There is neither a parliament nor independent courts or civil society organisations. In addition, there is strict mandatory military service and a forced labour system, from which many Eritreans flee abroad.

The anti-government demonstrators had previously asked the police to cancel the pro-government event, which was organised by Eritrea’s embassy, which they accuse of trying to monitor and track them.

“There are stark divisions among the nearly 20,000 Eritreans based in Israel. Critics of the regime describe it as the North Korea of Africa,” the Al Jazeera correspondent said.

“In 2019, a pro-president supporter was stabbed and beaten to death in Tel Aviv by three people opposed to the president.”

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2023-09-02 15:56:15Z
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India launches rocket towards the sun after successful moon lander mission - Sky News

Ten days after India's success in landing the first ever spacecraft on the southern side of the moon, the country has launched 'Aditya L1', its first mission to study the sun.

The spacecraft was launched on the polar satellite launch vehicle rocket, from Sriharikota on the eastern coast of India at 11.50am local time.

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said: "The launch of Aditya-L1 by PSLV-C57 is accomplished successfully.

"The vehicle has placed the satellite precisely into its intended orbit.

"India's first solar observatory has begun its journey to the destination of sun-Earth L1 point."

Aditya L1 will travel 1.5 million km for about four months and place itself in a halo orbit around the Lagrange point (L1) of the sun-Earth system.

It will stabilise in the orbit because of balancing gravitational forces.

According to ISRO, the Aditya-L1 mission is the first space-based observatory-class Indian solar mission to study the sun's atmosphere.

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The spacecraft is carrying seven payloads to observe and study the photosphere (deepest layers of the sun), chromosphere (layer about 400 km and 2,100 km above the photosphere) and the corona (the outermost layers of the sun).

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Using electromagnetic and particle and magnetic field detectors, it aims to study solar winds, which can cause disturbance on Earth and are commonly seen as "auroras".

Long-term data from the mission could help better understand the sun's impact on Earth's climate patterns.

Read more:
India takes 'walk on the moon' as rover makes historic first steps
Here's what we learnt from India's moon lander mission

Visible Emission Line Coronagraph (VELC), the primary payload on board the Aditya L1 has been designed is such a way that it will be sending large data of spectral lines continuously.

Every day it will send 1,440 images - meaning every minute an image of the sun will be sent to ground stations where it will need to be read, studied, processed and disseminated to scientists across the world.

Every storm that emerges from the sun and heads towards Earth passes through L1.

A satellite placed in that halo orbit around L1 of the sun-Earth system has a major advantage of continuously viewing the sun without any eclipse.

This will provide a greater advantage of observing the solar activities and its effect on space weather in real time.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was feted and congratulated by world leaders while attending the BRICS summit in South Africa when India became the first country to have a spacecraft land on the southern region of the moon.

He said "the success of Chandrayaan-3 is not only the victory of India, it is the triumph of the entire humankind".

Image: Chandrayaan-3 captures the moon's image just prior to touchdown Pic:@isro

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Watch India's rover touch moon surface

Today's ambitious launch is just a few days away from the largest gathering of global leaders in New Delhi for the G20 Summit - an opportunity for Mr Modi to showcase India's prowess in its successful low budget space program.

With a budget of about $74m (£57.7m) the Chandrayaan-3 moon mission was cheaper than even fake-space ventures, like Hollywood movies Gravity and The Martian, which both cost more than $100m (£78.8m) to make.

And with every successful launch, the country joins the table as a prominent player in the community of global space exploration.

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2023-09-02 06:28:32Z
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Moroccan tourists 'shot dead' after entering Algerian waters on jet ski - Sky News

Two Moroccan tourists on jet skis have reportedly been shot dead after straying into Algerian waters.

They were among a group who lost their bearings off the Moroccan town of Saidia on Tuesday.

"We were low on fuel for the water scooters and were drifting. In the darkness, we found ourselves in Algerian waters," Mohamed Kissi told Moroccan site Le360.

He said his brother Bilal, 29, and Abdelali Mechouer, 40, were killed after an Algerian government boat approached them and started firing.

He claimed they attacked despite seeing they were unarmed and his brother exchanging words with them.

Another man in their party was wounded and detained, said Mr Kissi, who said he swam away before being picked up by Moroccan authorities.

There is a long history of tensions between the two North African countries over issues such as the disputed Western Sahara region.

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Their border has been closed since 1994 and diplomatic relations were cut in 2021.

Moroccan authorities said they couldn't comment on the incident because the case is a judicial matter. Algerian authorities have also yet to respond.

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Some of the group have dual Moroccan-French nationality, and France's foreign ministry confirmed it had received word that one of its nationals had been killed and another detained.

It said it was in contact with the families and authorities in both Algeria and Morocco.

Mr Mechouer's father, meanwhile, said he wanted his son's body brought home.

"I appeal to Moroccan and Algerian authorities to reach an agreement to bring my son back to me to observe a proper funeral and burial for him," he said.

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2023-09-01 13:27:44Z
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