British hiker's family devastated as items found

Aziz Ziriat, left, and Samuel Harris were last heard from on New Year's Day

The family of a British mountaineer missing for 10 days in the Dolomites say they are "devastated by the tragic events of the last few days" as items belonging to him have been recovered by search teams in the Italian mountain range.

Aziz Ziriat, 36, and Samuel Harris, 35, from London, had not been heard from since 1 January. The alarm was raised after the pair failed to check into their flight home on 6 January.

On Wednesday, rescue teams announced they had found a body, believed to be that of Mr Harris, in the Passo di Conca area, buried under snow.

On Saturday, the cover of Mr Ziriat's mobile phone and a card were found not far from where Mr Harris's body was found.

Bad weather has hampered searches during the last week

'Overwhelmingly kind'

In a statement released on Saturday afternoon, Mr Ziriat's family said: "We have been devastated by the tragic events of the last few days.

"Our appreciation for the co-ordinated work and expertise of the Alpine Rescue, emergency services and volunteers in Italy is immeasurable.

"The work they have been doing, battling against challenging terrain and weather conditions, and their commitment to finding Aziz has been outstanding.

"We are also incredibly grateful for the overwhelmingly kind and generous ongoing support from family and friends, Aziz is continuing to be loved and prayed for.

"We hope, with all our hearts, he will be found and brought home soon."

Mr Ziriat's friend said authorities were doing "everything they could" to find him

More than 140 people, from Alpine Rescue, Guardia di Finanza Rescue, Carabinieri and the local fire brigade, took part in the search for Mr Ziriat on Saturday.

Of these, about 110, including dogs, went up to altitude to clear a large area at the base of the south face of Carè Alto.

Rescue teams were transported by helicopter

Earlier, Joe Stone, a university friend of Mr Ziriat, said authorities were "trying everything" to find him.

"There is an acceptance among us that it's not going to be good news," Mr Stone said on Saturday.

"But it would be really nice to find him and be put out of this limbo."

The pair's last known location had been a mountain hut called Casina Dosson, close to the town of Tione Di Trento, near Riva Del Garda on Lake Garda.

In a statement on Friday, the Italian rescue services said the search where the body believed to be Mr Harris was found had not led to the discovery of Mr Ziriat.

Thick fog forced the search operation to stop on Friday afternoon.

Mr Harris was found on Wednesday under snow at the foot of a rock face on Carè Alto mountain near Trento.

His cause of death is unclear but one possible reason given by authorities was a fall "from above".