Jet ski shooting survivor recounts torture endured in Algeria

After spending a year in prison in Algeria, French-Moroccan Ismail Snabi returned to France, and shared his harrowing experience with French news outlet Le Monde.

On August 29, 2023, during a jet-ski trip with friends, their scooter broke down, leaving them stranded in Algerian waters. In trying to reach Saïdia marina, two of his friends, Bilal Kissi and Abdelali Mchiouer, were killed by Algerian coastguards, while another escaped.

After a year in prison in Algeria, Ismail Snabi, now 28 years old, was finally released and returned to France. However, the traumatic memories of that tragic day continue to haunt him as he relives the experience daily in his apartment in Clichy-sous-Bois.

According to Le Monde, on the afternoon of August 29, 2023, at around 5 p.m., the sky was a vivid blue, and the sea was as calm as a lake. Ismail Snabi and his friends set off on jet skis toward Cap-de-l’Eau, a fishing village located about 20 minutes west of Saïdia. They stopped at a beachside restaurant to eat.

As the day grew late, they prepared to return. Ismail Snabi and Mohamed Kissi each took a jet ski, while Bilal Kissi and Abdelali Mchiouer shared a third. “We’re cruising around, taking some snaps for Snapchat. Then, as the night fell, the fog rolled in,” Snabi recalled, according to the same source.

They all believed they were heading back to Saidia Marina, but the journey felt unusually long. “I stopped and told Mohamed that we’d made a mistake. We could only see a white shape in the distance, and there were no signs to guide us,” he said.

Suddenly, a boat appears, speeding toward them: Algerian soldiers, added the same source. According to Ismail Snabi, the boat quickly zigzagged between their jet skis, as if trying to separate them from each other. “I was glad to see them, thinking they’d help us and show us the way,” Ismail recalls. He then spoke briefly in Arabic with the coastguards, stating, “we took the wrong route, we came from Morocco.”

But the soldiers’ response was harsh: “Leave immediately! Morocco is that way.” Without hesitation, the four men obeyed the order and turned back.

The four friends turned around right away, but gunshots soon followed. In a panic, Ismail jumped into the water, thinking he was about to die. When the soldiers pulled him out, they tied him up and beat him brutally, asking ridiculous questions about a possible trip to Israel or whether he drank alcohol. This was just the start of another nightmare aboard the boat.

While Ismail was taken to Algeria, his friends Bilal and Abdelali were shot and killed. Mohammed managed to make it back to the Moroccan coast.

It wasn’t until much later that Ismail found out about the tragedy: a police officer in prison showed him a photo of Abdelali’s body, and it wasn’t until weeks later that he was told about Bilal’s death.

Imprisoned in Algeria, Ismail endured countless humiliations and tortures including beatings, pointless interrogations, and threats. He lost 30 kilos during his time in prison, and his mental health steadily worsened.

Sentenced to a year in prison and slapped with an outrageous fine of 100,000 euros, he was forced to go into debt to secure his freedom. When he was released in August 2024, he received one last veiled threat: “Don’t talk. Remember, you have family here.”

Today, Ismail is working to rebuild his life, seeing a psychiatrist and being supported by his family. However, the memories of that time still haunt him. A complaint has been filed by the victims’ families, which could lead to justice, though the outcome remains uncertain.