The first of five men found alive after spending more than a week trapped inside a flooded cave in Laos has been freed.

All seven people trapped inside a cave in central Laos' Xaysomboun province have been found alive, according to a report from Lao National TV on Wednesday.

A specialized rescue team racing against time in Laos is closing in on seven people who have been trapped deep inside a cave for nearly a week. After successfully clearing through 15 meters (16 yards) of dense debris and mud in a single day, the operation's leader expressed immense confidence that a breakthrough is imminent.

Two investigations, including a culpable homicide inquiry, have been opened into the Maldives deep-water cave expedition that resulted in the deaths of five Italian scuba divers, officials in the Maldives and Rome say.

The Maldivian government has confirmed that the bodies of four missing Italian scuba divers have been located after a fatal cave diving incident in Vaavu Atoll, while investigations into the accident continue.

Five Italians have died in a scuba diving accident in the Maldives, according to Italy’s foreign ministry.

A groundbreaking genetic analysis of nine Neanderthal teeth found in Stajnia Cave, Poland, is providing a new look into how ancient hominins moved and lived across the European continent.

Our resilient hunter-gatherer ancestors contended with wild animals, tsunamis and the watery separation of Britain from mainland Europe, shares historian Mike Pitts. Discover what life was like for the first humans in Britain.

Over 300 archaeological samples weighing more than 100 kilograms, uncovered during excavations at Azerbaijan’s Azykh Cave, have been sent to Germany, Norway, and Denmark for analysis.