France, June 5 -- The dead were among a group returning from Mali for a Muslim festival when they ran short of water, the Agadez governorate said in a post on Facebook.

The 49 people "died of thirst in a remote area more than 80 kilometres west of Assamaka", added the statement.

Assamaka is a main crossing point between Niger and Algeria but also close to the Mali frontier.

"Deprived of water and unable to repair the vehicle despite the efforts of the driver, his assistants and the passengers, the travellers found themselves trapped in the heart of a hostile environment where extreme temperatures and the absence of supply points make survival extremely difficult," the governorate wrote. The town of Assamaka in north-east Niger lies in ...