The body of a British hiker missing in the Dolomites since New Year’s Day has been recovered, Italian rescuers said on Saturday.

Aziz Ziriat, 36, A British hiker from London, was found buried in snow near the southern face of Carè Alto, a peak in the Trentino region. The discovery was made by a team from the Trentino Alpine and Speleological Rescue Service.

Ziriat had been hiking with his friend Sam Harris, 35, when the pair went missing. Harris’s body was found shortly after the search began in early January, located roughly one kilometre from where Ziriat was found.

Ziriat’s remains were discovered on Saturday morning in a rocky crevice, detected by a rescue dog from the Italian financial police’s Alpine rescue branch. His body lay 400 metres lower in altitude than Harris’s, at the base of a cliff.

Rescuers airlifted Ziriat’s body to a nearby sports field in Spiazzo Rendena. His family has been informed of the recovery.

The two men were last seen on 1 January at a mountain hut named Casina Dosson, near Tione di Trento, close to Lake Garda. The alarm was raised after they failed to board their return flight on 6 January.

Firefighters and local volunteers also took part in the search, which had continued in difficult winter conditions for months.

The UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said it was supporting Ziriat’s family and remains in contact with Italian authorities.