Bodies of 4 Italian divers found in Maldives sea cave, says Foreign Ministry – National
Italy’s Foreign Ministry said on Monday rescuers found the bodies of four Italian divers deep in an underwater cave on an island in the Maldives, four days after they were reported missing.
The search resumed on Monday after being suspended following the death of a local military diver during a dangerous mission to reach them.
The government of the Indian Ocean island nation confirmed that the bodies were found in the inner part of the cave by three Finnish experts, supported by the Maldives police and military.
“As previously thought, these four bodies were found inside the cave, not only inside the cave but inside the cave entering the third part of the cave, which is the largest part,” said Ahmed Shaam, a spokesman for the Maldives government.
He said the two found “very much together.”
“The plan is that they will try to find two bodies tomorrow and maybe two more the day after,” Shaam said in a statement sent to the media.
Divers’ Alert Network Europe, which deployed the three Finnish divers, said on its website that they are technical and cave divers with international experience in search and recovery missions, including working in “deep waters, confined spaces, and extremely dangerous conditions.”
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The team used advanced technical systems, including closed rebreathers, a system that regenerates exhaled breathing gas and removes carbon dioxide through a chemical scrubber, allowing for “very long dives,” the organization explains.
The body of a fifth Italian – a diving instructor – was found earlier outside the cave. The five were exploring a cave about 50 meters (160 feet) deep in Vaavu Atoll on Thursday, according to the Italian Foreign Ministry. The recreational limit for diving in the Maldives is 30 meters (98 feet).
Three Finnish divers, experts in deep diving and cave diving arrived in the Maldives on Sunday.
Maldives presidential spokesman Mohamed Hussain Shareef said earlier that the search was suspended after Mohamed Mahudhee, a member of the Maldivian National Defense Force, died of illness underwater after being transferred to a hospital in the capital on Saturday.
Bad weather has repeatedly hampered rescue efforts.
The first teams were already diving to identify and mark the entrance to the cave system where the Italians disappeared. The cause of death is still under investigation.
© 2026 The Canadian Press
