Italy's foreign ministry said Monday that rescuers have located the bodies of four Italian divers believed to be deep inside an underwater cave in a Maldive atoll.
The searches had resumed on Monday after being suspended following the death of a local military diver during a perilous mission to try to reach them.
Five Italian divers are believed to have died while exploring a cave at a depth of about 50 metres (160 feet) in Vaavu Atoll on Thursday, according to Italy's Foreign Ministry.
The recreational diving limit in the Maldives is 30 metres (98 feet).
The body of Italian diving instructor Gianluca Benedetti was recovered first, on the same day near the mouth of the cave.
The rest of the victims have been identified as Monica Montefalcone, an associate professor of ecology at the University of Genoa; her daughter, Giorgia Sommacal; marine biologist Federico Gualtieri; and researcher Muriel Oddenino.
A diver from the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) involved in the search operation died on Saturday due to decompression illness, prompting authorities to temporarily halt the recovery mission amid rough weather and turbulent sea conditions.
