Italy has posthumously conferred its highest civilian honour for bravery, the Gold Medal for Civil Valour, on Maldives National Defence Force Staff Sergeant Mohamed Mahudhee.
The award was presented to his family at a ceremony held at Barceló Nasandhura in Malé on Wednesday evening. Italian Ambassador Damiano Francovigh and Economic Minister Mohamed Saeed jointly presented the medal and certificate. The event also marked Italy’s National Day and 60 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
Mahudhee died in May after developing severe decompression sickness during a high-risk search operation for four Italian tourists and their instructor who went missing in an underwater cave off Vaavu Alimathaa at depths exceeding 58 metres. He was transported to ADK Hospital in Malé but did not survive.
Minister Saeed paid tribute to Mahudhee’s service and thanked the Italian government for its support. The Italian Embassy in Colombo and the Honorary Consular Agency in Malé have also launched a fundraising campaign for his family, open until the end of the year through a dedicated account at Maldives Islamic Bank.
