A military diver has died while searching for the bodies of a group of Italians who perished during a deep-sea cave expedition in the Maldives. Sergeant Major Mohammed Mahudhee lost his life as recovery operations continued in the Vaavu Atoll on Saturday.Maldives Presidential Spokesman Mohammed Hussain Shareef said that Mahudhee, a member of the Maldivian National Defence Force, died of underwater decompression sickness after being transferred to a hospital in the capital.'The death goes to show the difficulty of the mission,' he said.The Maldivian military said in an X post: 'His courage, his sacrifice, and service to the nation will always be remembered. 'Our deepest condolences to his family and colleagues.'Earlier, Shareef said the searchers had prepared a plan based on their progress exploring the cave on Friday. Mahudhee was part of the group that briefed Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu on the rescue plan when he visited the search site on Friday. Sergeant Major Mohammed Mahudhee, a diver for the Maldives coast guard, lost his life as recovery operations continued in the Vaavu Atoll on SaturdayOne of the victims has been named as Monica Montefalcone, a professor and researcher at the University of Genoa