Finland

Italy awards top honour to Finland cave divers

Italian President Sergio Mattarella awarded Italy's highest civilian honour, the Order of Merit, to three Finnish divers—Sammy Parkarinen, Jenny Westaland, and Patrick Gronquist—for recovering the bodies of Italian divers who went missing in an underwater cave in the Maldives. The award was presented on the day of the funeral for two of the deceased, Monica Montefalcon (a University of Genoa professor) and her 20-year-old daughter Georgia Semacal, attended by around 2,000 people. Staff Sergeant Mohamed Mahudhee of the Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF) died during the search operation. The Maldives Police Service is investigating whether negligence contributed to his death.