A body has been found in the search for two British hikers missing in the Dolomites, Italy’s alpine rescue service has said.

Aziz Ziriat, 36, and 35-year-old Samuel Harris, from London, were last heard from on New Year’s Day, when they sent messages home from the Trentino region in northern Italy.

Police said the two mountain climbers were last seen in the San Valentino Valley near a mountain hut named Casina Dosson at the base of the south face of Mount Care Alto.

In a statement, the alpine rescue service said the body had been found in deep snow at an altitude of 2,600 metres.