135 French citizens still unaccounted for after deadly earthquake in Nepal

A total of 135 French citizens are still unaccounted for after the deadly earthquake in Nepal, announced Romain Nadal, the spokesman for the French Foreign Affairs Ministry, in a statement.

"At this stage, three French citizens are dead, a fourth is presumed disappeared," said Nadal, adding that a building hosting a group of six French in Langtang has been hit by a landslide, which will raise the number of French victims, Xinhua reported on Saturday.

According to him, many French, already located, remain trapped in inaccessible villages and hamlets at altitudes between 3,000 and 6,000 meters.

With the help of the Nepalese authorities, five French nationals were rescued Saturday morning, announced the spokesman of the ministry, affirming that another rescue operation is ongoing to save the 13 French nationals blocked in some villages in Manaslu valley.

The death toll from a powerful earthquake in Nepal climbed to 6,624 and a total of 14,025 others were injured, the Nepalese police said on Saturday.

Efforts were ongoing to retrieve bodies from the rubble, though hopes have faded for finding more survivors a week after the 7.9-magnitude quake hit the Himalayan country.