A body has been found in the search for two French tourists and their local guide who disappeared last week while on safari in north-western Benin.

Sources cited in multiple reports say the body was that of the guide, but there has been no official confirmation.

The group disappeared in Pendjari National Park on Wednesday.

The park is on the border with Burkina Faso where Islamist militants have been increasingly active in recent months.

The three were last seen driving a rented Ford SUV in the park, which is some 550km (335 miles) north of Benin’s capital, Porto Novo.

Beninese and French authorities are investigating the incident.

In a statement shared on social media (in French), Benin’s Ministry of Interior said a body was discovered on Saturday but had not yet been identified.

A local official and regional security source told the Reuters news agency that the body belonged to the local guide.

They said the guide was found shot dead, while the car was discovered burned in eastern Burkina Faso.

The fate of the two French tourists remains unclear, they added.