Moroccans protest after Algeria acknowledges deadly shooting at a group on water scooters

ALGIERS, Algeria (AP) — Long-standing tensions between Morocco and Algeria have moved up a notch with a deadly confrontation at sea last week between the Algerian Coast Guard and several men on water scooters. Algeria’s Defense Ministry has acknowledged that its forces fired on a group of people on water scooters who strayed into Algerian waters from Morocco last Tuesday, and that a body was later found. On Monday, Morocco’s National Council for Human Rights condemned the Algerian Coast Guard’s use of live ammunition against unarmed civilians, decrying the incident as a “severe violation of international standards and human rights laws.” Moroccan human rights activists demonstrated, brandishing signs demanding accountability from Algeria.