A manslaughter investigation has been launched after two young brothers died in a car during a record-breaking heatwave in southern France. Four-year-old Kassim Benouali and his two-year-old brother Sadek were found unconscious in a white Peugeot in Carpentras on June 26, 2026. Temperatures inside the vehicle may have reached 70°C, according to investigators.
Conflicting Accounts from Mother
The boys' mother, Wafa El Boubkari, initially told police she had "forgotten her children" while shopping, according to reports. However, a source close to the investigation told AFP that she later changed her story, claiming the children had climbed into the car without her knowledge, locked the doors, and became trapped. The mother, who is separated from her husband, was living with her own mother at the time of the incident. She has two other children under the age of 10.
Grandmother Calls It a 'Huge Tragedy'
The boys' grandmother, Fatiha, described the event as a "huge tragedy." She explained that her daughter had taken the boys swimming and to the supermarket before returning home. "She then drove home with the boys who she left in the car to offload the shopping," Fatiha told the Daily Mail. "It was a genuine mistake, nothing illegal has happened. Everybody has been struggling to focus in this heat, she got busy, and my daughter was also dealing with a lot of other things in her life."
Emergency Response and Autopsy Results
The boys were found in cardiac arrest at around 1 p.m. Emergency services rushed to the scene but could not revive them. A post-mortem examination confirmed they died from dehydration due to "exposure to excessive heat." A funeral service was held on Friday at Carpentras Mosque. Ms. Boubkari spent the first days of the week in hospital being treated for shock.
Colleague Describes Mother as 'Hardworking'
A colleague from the patisserie where Ms. Boubkari works described her as "a very nice, hardworking, down to earth woman who was dealing with a lot of things." The colleague added: "She's a very good mother and was doing her best. The pain she is going through must be unimaginable and beyond words. Our hearts go out to her, what has happened is horrific and tragic."
