Misleading Video Falsely Linked to Deadly Algerian Coast Guard Incident

A video posted on X on September 2 would show the Moroccan vacationers "taunting" the Algerian navy, just before their murder. "The young Moroccans went in (sic) to taunt and play with the Algerian coast guards," claims the author of the post. Quickly, the video went viral on social networks. In this video, we can see three jet skis, chased by two law enforcement boats, maneuvering quickly and dangerously in front of bathers to try to escape them. The publication of the same video on Facebook in French has accumulated more than 113,000 views on September 2.

The Les Observateurs de France 24 site has verified the authenticity of this video. The team comes across a video posted by a YouTube channel of a woman presenting herself as a resident in Morocco. This video, dated July 18, is similar to the scene of the murder of the Moroccan vacationers that occurred on August 29, 2023. But the caption in Arabic proves that these are two distinct videos. It is indicated that these are "harraga" (a term designating young people taking to the sea from the Maghreb countries to illegally reach Europe), pursued by the Moroccan security forces, on the beach of Belyounech, in Morocco.

After performing a reverse image search on this new, "higher quality" video, the journalist is directed to an article dated July 17 from El Faro de Ceuta. This local Spanish newspaper specified that it was a chase of the Moroccan gendarmerie with smugglers on the beach of Beliones in Ceuta, also called Belyounech in Morocco, on July 16. In another article dated July 24, the same newspaper specifies that the royal gendarmerie arrested three residents of Ceuta, including two after the operation. Article illustrated with confiscated jet skis.

Europa Sur also addressed the same subject. According to the Spanish newspaper from the Andalusia region, "18 members of the Spanish Reserve and Security Group arrived in Ceuta to strengthen the fight against human trafficking and drug trafficking on July 17." According to data provided by the Ministry of the Interior to the Spanish media Publico, "at least 288 people have managed to reach Spain from Morocco on board 147 jet skis from January to September 2022."

https://youtu.be/eU2DFG06E9o