ES News email The latest headlines in your inbox twice a day Monday - Friday plus breaking news updates Enter your email address Continue Please enter an email address Email address is invalid Fill out this field Email address is invalid You already have an account. Please log in Register with your social account or click here to log in I would like to receive lunchtime headlines Monday - Friday plus breaking news alerts, by email Update newsletter preferences

The entire Thai football team trapped in a flooded cave for more than two weeks has been freed following a dangerous rescue operation that has gripped the world.

Families are rejoicing after the last four boys were seen being carried from the entrance of the Tham Luang Nang Non cave on stretchers on Tuesday.

Their 25-year-old coach has also been rescued this afternoon after completing the perilous swim to safety.

The third and final phase of the rescue operation began on Tuesday morning, with 19 divers involved in guiding members of the young football team through dark, narrow, underwater passages.

Officials confirmed that all four boys had been freed alive and were being assessed in hospital. Two were said to be suffering from pneumonia.

The navy SEALs said they were waiting for a medic and three divers who stayed with the boys in their dark refuge deep inside the cave complex to come out.

Thailand Cave Rescue - In pictures 71 show all Thailand Cave Rescue - In pictures 1/71 Soccer coach Ekkapol Chanthawong, front, and members of the soccer team who were rescued from a flooded cave last week attend a Buddhist ceremony as they prepare to be ordained as Buddhist monks and novices in the Mae Sai district, Chiang Rai province, northern Thailand AP 2/71 Soccer coach Ekkapol Chantawong, center, lights a candle as he and members of the rescued soccer team attend a Buddhist ceremony that is believed to extend the lives of its attendees as well as ridding them of dangers and misfortunes, in Mae Sai district, Chiang Rai province, northern Thailand, AP 3/71 Soccer coach Ekkapol Chantawong, left front, and members of the rescued soccer team attend a Buddhist ceremony that is believed to extend the lives of its attendees as well as ridding them of dangers and misfortunes, in Mae Sai district, Chiang Rai province, northern Thailand AP 4/71 members of Wild Boar soccer team and their assistant coach Ekapol Chantawong (R), who were rescued from the Tham Luang cave, performing a traditional Thai greeting in front of a backdrop with a banner reading 'Thanks to the world' during a religious worship ritual at Wat Phra Thart Doi Wao temple in Mae Sai district, Chiang Rai province, Thailand EPA 5/71 Members of the Wild Boars soccer team, who were rescued from Tham Luang cave, offering prayers next to Thai Buddhist monks during a religious worship ritual at Wat Phra Thart Doi Wao temple in Mae Sai district, Chiang Rai province, Thailand EPA 6/71 Three of the 12 boys are seen recovering in their hospital beds after being rescued along with their coach from a flooded cave in Mae Sai, Chiang Rai province, northern Thailand Thailand Government Spokesman Bureau via AP 7/71 Family members watch the rescued boys through a window outside the recovery ward at the Chiang Rai hospital in Chiang Rai province, northern Thailand AP 8/71 AP 9/71 AP 10/71 A rescue diver enters the Thai cave during the rescue operation AFP/Getty Images 11/71 AP 12/71 AP 13/71 AP 14/71 AP 15/71 AP 16/71 Rescue personnel during the rescue operation for members of the "Wild Boars AFP/Getty Images 17/71 AFP/Getty Images 18/71 AFP/Getty Images 19/71 A group of Thai Navy divers in the Tham Luang cave during rescue operations Thai Navy SEAL via Getty Images 20/71 Rescue personnel walk at the site of the Tham Luang cave complex during a mission to rescue the remaining members of a soccer team trapped in a flooded cave in Chiang Rai, Thailan Reuters 21/71 Rescue success: The last four navy Seals emerge from the cave Thai NavySEAL/Facebook 22/71 Thai soldiers and paramedics help one of the boys rescued from the cave on Sunday AFP/Getty Images 23/71 Rescue effort to resume: Thai military personnel prepare to move the four rescued boys from the mouth of the cave to a hospital EPA 24/71 Emergency workers carry a stretcher with one of the rescued boy to be transported by ambulance to a hospital AP 25/71 An emergency team carries a stretcher believed to be carrying one of the rescued boys from the flooded cave to a waiting helicopter AP 26/71 A convoy of ambulances were seen transporting the children to hospital EPA 27/71 Rescue workers along the main road leading to Tham Luang Nang Non cave Getty Images 28/71 Rescue teams work at the Tham Luang cave complex after members of a football team and their coach were found alive Reuters 29/71 A Thai boy smiles as a Thai Navy Seals medic helps the injured in the cave AP 30/71 Rescue teams work in the cave amid reports the boys are receiving diving and swimming lessons Reuters 31/71 The complex rescue operation could last for months Reuters 32/71 The boys inside the cave are all aged between 11 and 16 AP 33/71 A Thai Navy Seal medic helps an injured child inside a cave AP 34/71 A rescue team personnel work at the Tham Luang cave complex Reuters 35/71 The boys are located 2.5 miles inside the narrow, winding cave complex Reuters 36/71 A complicated rescue operation is underway to remove the boys Reuters 37/71 Flood waters mean the operation to remove the boys could take months Reuters 38/71 Rescue teams at work inside the cave complex Reuters 39/71 A picture of the missing boys smiling from inside the cave was shared with their relatives at ground level AFP/Getty Images 40/71 The boys inside the Tham Luang cave AP 41/71 The Brit divers sit in a meeting after finding the children and football coach alive in the cave AFP/Getty Images 42/71 Rescuers are sent inside Tham Luang Nang Non cave to continue the rescue Getty Images 43/71 Thai rescue workers and associated officials prepare oxygen tanks for the rescue operation EPA 44/71 The boys were seen smiling in the photo which was circulated among relatives AFP/Getty Images 45/71 Joy: a family member smiles after hearing the news that the missing 12 boys and their soccer coach have been found AP 46/71 A happy family member shows the latest pictures of the missing boys taken by rescue divers AFP/Getty Images 47/71 Family members smile after hearing the news that the missing 12 boys and their soccer coach have been found AP 48/71 Thai workers and officials watch during efforts to drain the flooded cave - as the football team and coach were found alive inside EPA 49/71 Members of the Thai army carry supplies inside the cave EPA 50/71 Rescuers carried out a complex and perilous mission to try and find the boys and their football coach EPA 51/71 Soldiers carry sandbags deep inside the cave EPA 52/71 Thousands of gallons of floodwater was pumped out of the cave in the effort to find the people who were trapped EPA 53/71 Now a complex rescue operation must be undertaken to safely return the 12 boys and their coach to the surface EPA 54/71 Journalists try to interview a military officer near the Tham Luang cave complex after the boys were found alive Reuters 55/71 A reporter smiles after learning of the news the boys were still alive inside the cave, along with their coach Reuters 56/71 Thai navy SEAL divers assess the water level in a tunnel. They later made their way through to the trapped football team, finding them alive in the cave AFP/Getty Images 57/71 Rescue personnel walk out of the entrance to a cave complex where it's believed that 12 football team members and their coach went missing AP 58/71 Thai military officials, the rescue workers and park officials inform associated officials of their plan in regards to the rescue operation for missing football players and their coach at the Tham Luang cave in Tham Luang Khun Nam Nang Noon Forest Park in Chiang Rai province, Thailand EPA 59/71 Relatives pray at a Buddhist ceremony in Khun Nam Nang Non Forest Park Getty Images 60/71 Three British cave-divers, Richard William Stanton, Robert Charles Harper and John Volanthen (left to right) arrive on Wednesday AFP/Getty Images 61/71 Thai military personnel walk into a cave during the rescue operation EPA 62/71 Thai military personnel gather as flood waters rise inside the cave EPA 63/71 rescue workers at the entrance of the Tham Luang cave AFP/Getty Images 64/71 Hoses and mobile power generator to be used for pumping out water in the cave are laid out on the ground of Khun Nam Nang Non Forest Park in Chiang Rai near the Tham Luang cave entrance AFP/Getty Images 65/71 Thai soldiers search for alternative ways into the cave where the team are stuck AFP/Getty Images 66/71 Thai soldiers relay electric cable deep into the Tham Luang cave at the Khun Nam Nang Non Forest Park in Chiang Rai AFP/Getty Images 67/71 Rescuers prepare their equipment on the next attemp to enter the Tham Luang Nang Non cave Getty Images 68/71 A Thai official takes a photo in the area where the officials used as a gathering point inside the cave, but now is flooded, during the rescue operation for missing football players and their coach at the Tham Luang cave in Tham Luang Khun Nam Nang Noon Forest Park in Chiang Rai province, Thailand EPA 69/71 Three British cave divers, who have previously explored this cave site, John Volamthen (R), Robert Charlie Harper (L) and Richard William Stanton (C) arrive at the Tham Luang cave to join the rescue operation for missing football players and their coach at the Tham Luang cave in Tham Luang Khun Nam Nang Noon Forest Park in Chiang Rai province, Thailand EPA 70/71 A Buddhist monk and relatives pray near Tham Luang caves during the search Reuters 71/71 US military personnel arrive at Khun Nam Nang Non Forest Park near Than Luang cave in Chiang Rai province AFP/Getty Images 1/71 Soccer coach Ekkapol Chanthawong, front, and members of the soccer team who were rescued from a flooded cave last week attend a Buddhist ceremony as they prepare to be ordained as Buddhist monks and novices in the Mae Sai district, Chiang Rai province, northern Thailand AP 2/71 Soccer coach Ekkapol Chantawong, center, lights a candle as he and members of the rescued soccer team attend a Buddhist ceremony that is believed to extend the lives of its attendees as well as ridding them of dangers and misfortunes, in Mae Sai district, Chiang Rai province, northern Thailand, AP 3/71 Soccer coach Ekkapol Chantawong, left front, and members of the rescued soccer team attend a Buddhist ceremony that is believed to extend the lives of its attendees as well as ridding them of dangers and misfortunes, in Mae Sai district, Chiang Rai province, northern Thailand AP 4/71 members of Wild Boar soccer team and their assistant coach Ekapol Chantawong (R), who were rescued from the Tham Luang cave, performing a traditional Thai greeting in front of a backdrop with a banner reading 'Thanks to the world' during a religious worship ritual at Wat Phra Thart Doi Wao temple in Mae Sai district, Chiang Rai province, Thailand EPA 5/71 Members of the Wild Boars soccer team, who were rescued from Tham Luang cave, offering prayers next to Thai Buddhist monks during a religious worship ritual at Wat Phra Thart Doi Wao temple in Mae Sai district, Chiang Rai province, Thailand EPA 6/71 Three of the 12 boys are seen recovering in their hospital beds after being rescued along with their coach from a flooded cave in Mae Sai, Chiang Rai province, northern Thailand Thailand Government Spokesman Bureau via AP 7/71 Family members watch the rescued boys through a window outside the recovery ward at the Chiang Rai hospital in Chiang Rai province, northern Thailand AP 8/71 AP 9/71 AP 10/71 A rescue diver enters the Thai cave during the rescue operation AFP/Getty Images 11/71 AP 12/71 AP 13/71 AP 14/71 AP 15/71 AP 16/71 Rescue personnel during the rescue operation for members of the "Wild Boars AFP/Getty Images 17/71 AFP/Getty Images 18/71 AFP/Getty Images 19/71 A group of Thai Navy divers in the Tham Luang cave during rescue operations Thai Navy SEAL via Getty Images 20/71 Rescue personnel walk at the site of the Tham Luang cave complex during a mission to rescue the remaining members of a soccer team trapped in a flooded cave in Chiang Rai, Thailan Reuters 21/71 Rescue success: The last four navy Seals emerge from the cave Thai NavySEAL/Facebook 22/71 Thai soldiers and paramedics help one of the boys rescued from the cave on Sunday AFP/Getty Images 23/71 Rescue effort to resume: Thai military personnel prepare to move the four rescued boys from the mouth of the cave to a hospital EPA 24/71 Emergency workers carry a stretcher with one of the rescued boy to be transported by ambulance to a hospital AP 25/71 An emergency team carries a stretcher believed to be carrying one of the rescued boys from the flooded cave to a waiting helicopter AP 26/71 A convoy of ambulances were seen transporting the children to hospital EPA 27/71 Rescue workers along the main road leading to Tham Luang Nang Non cave Getty Images 28/71 Rescue teams work at the Tham Luang cave complex after members of a football team and their coach were found alive Reuters 29/71 A Thai boy smiles as a Thai Navy Seals medic helps the injured in the cave AP 30/71 Rescue teams work in the cave amid reports the boys are receiving diving and swimming lessons Reuters 31/71 The complex rescue operation could last for months Reuters 32/71 The boys inside the cave are all aged between 11 and 16 AP 33/71 A Thai Navy Seal medic helps an injured child inside a cave AP 34/71 A rescue team personnel work at the Tham Luang cave complex Reuters 35/71 The boys are located 2.5 miles inside the narrow, winding cave complex Reuters 36/71 A complicated rescue operation is underway to remove the boys Reuters 37/71 Flood waters mean the operation to remove the boys could take months Reuters 38/71 Rescue teams at work inside the cave complex Reuters 39/71 A picture of the missing boys smiling from inside the cave was shared with their relatives at ground level AFP/Getty Images 40/71 The boys inside the Tham Luang cave AP 41/71 The Brit divers sit in a meeting after finding the children and football coach alive in the cave AFP/Getty Images 42/71 Rescuers are sent inside Tham Luang Nang Non cave to continue the rescue Getty Images 43/71 Thai rescue workers and associated officials prepare oxygen tanks for the rescue operation EPA 44/71 The boys were seen smiling in the photo which was circulated among relatives AFP/Getty Images 45/71 Joy: a family member smiles after hearing the news that the missing 12 boys and their soccer coach have been found AP 46/71 A happy family member shows the latest pictures of the missing boys taken by rescue divers AFP/Getty Images 47/71 Family members smile after hearing the news that the missing 12 boys and their soccer coach have been found AP 48/71 Thai workers and officials watch during efforts to drain the flooded cave - as the football team and coach were found alive inside EPA 49/71 Members of the Thai army carry supplies inside the cave EPA 50/71 Rescuers carried out a complex and perilous mission to try and find the boys and their football coach EPA 51/71 Soldiers carry sandbags deep inside the cave EPA 52/71 Thousands of gallons of floodwater was pumped out of the cave in the effort to find the people who were trapped EPA 53/71 Now a complex rescue operation must be undertaken to safely return the 12 boys and their coach to the surface EPA 54/71 Journalists try to interview a military officer near the Tham Luang cave complex after the boys were found alive Reuters 55/71 A reporter smiles after learning of the news the boys were still alive inside the cave, along with their coach Reuters 56/71 Thai navy SEAL divers assess the water level in a tunnel. They later made their way through to the trapped football team, finding them alive in the cave AFP/Getty Images 57/71 Rescue personnel walk out of the entrance to a cave complex where it's believed that 12 football team members and their coach went missing AP 58/71 Thai military officials, the rescue workers and park officials inform associated officials of their plan in regards to the rescue operation for missing football players and their coach at the Tham Luang cave in Tham Luang Khun Nam Nang Noon Forest Park in Chiang Rai province, Thailand EPA 59/71 Relatives pray at a Buddhist ceremony in Khun Nam Nang Non Forest Park Getty Images 60/71 Three British cave-divers, Richard William Stanton, Robert Charles Harper and John Volanthen (left to right) arrive on Wednesday AFP/Getty Images 61/71 Thai military personnel walk into a cave during the rescue operation EPA 62/71 Thai military personnel gather as flood waters rise inside the cave EPA 63/71 rescue workers at the entrance of the Tham Luang cave AFP/Getty Images 64/71 Hoses and mobile power generator to be used for pumping out water in the cave are laid out on the ground of Khun Nam Nang Non Forest Park in Chiang Rai near the Tham Luang cave entrance AFP/Getty Images 65/71 Thai soldiers search for alternative ways into the cave where the team are stuck AFP/Getty Images 66/71 Thai soldiers relay electric cable deep into the Tham Luang cave at the Khun Nam Nang Non Forest Park in Chiang Rai AFP/Getty Images 67/71 Rescuers prepare their equipment on the next attemp to enter the Tham Luang Nang Non cave Getty Images 68/71 A Thai official takes a photo in the area where the officials used as a gathering point inside the cave, but now is flooded, during the rescue operation for missing football players and their coach at the Tham Luang cave in Tham Luang Khun Nam Nang Noon Forest Park in Chiang Rai province, Thailand EPA 69/71 Three British cave divers, who have previously explored this cave site, John Volamthen (R), Robert Charlie Harper (L) and Richard William Stanton (C) arrive at the Tham Luang cave to join the rescue operation for missing football players and their coach at the Tham Luang cave in Tham Luang Khun Nam Nang Noon Forest Park in Chiang Rai province, Thailand EPA 70/71 A Buddhist monk and relatives pray near Tham Luang caves during the search Reuters 71/71 US military personnel arrive at Khun Nam Nang Non Forest Park near Than Luang cave in Chiang Rai province AFP/Getty Images

The daring operation, which saw one Thai Navy SEAL diver die on Friday, has been followed closely by people across the planet and saw American entrepreneur Elon Musk fly to Thailand with a mini submarine and an offer to help.

The rescued boys, aged 11-16, have all been offered tickets to the World Cup final by Fifa but are unlikely to be deemed healthy enough by Sunday.

Jedsada Chokdumrongsuk, permanent secretary at the Public Health Ministry, said the first four boys rescued are now able to eat normal food.

Two of them possibly have a lung infection but all eight are generally "healthy and smiling," he said.

Rescue timeline June 23: After a morning practice, 12 members of the local Wild Boars youth soccer team bicycle with their 25-year-old coach to the Tham Luang Nang Non cave to explore, when heavy rains begin. When none of the boys return home after dark and cannot be contacted, parents report them as missing. Their bicycles are found parked and locked at the cave entrance as a search begins around midnight. June 24: Search and rescue teams comprising local authorities, police and rescue workers find soccer shoes and backpacks left behind by the boys near the cave entrance. June 25: As the search expands, handprints and footprints thought to belong to the boys are found farther from the cave entrance. Parents holding a vigil outside begin prayer sessions. June 26: About a dozen Thai navy SEALs and others searchers penetrate the cave, but Interior Minister Anupong Paojinda tells reporters they are seriously handicapped by muddy water that has filled some chambers of the large cave to their ceilings. June 27: More heavy rainfall stymies search efforts, flooding underground passages faster than water can be pumped out. A U.S. military team and British cave experts, along with several other private teams of foreign cavers, join the operation. June 28: Efforts begin to drain groundwater from the cave by drilling from outside into the mountain. A search for other entrances to the cave intensifies as diving is temporarily suspended for safety reasons. June 29: Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha visits the cave site and urges relatives of the missing not to give up hope. Efforts to drain the cave with pumps make little progress. June 30: The effort to locate the missing picks up pace again, as a break in the rain eases flooding in the system of caverns and more experts from around the world, including Australia and China, join the rescue mission. In anticipation of finding the boys, an evacuation drill is held to practice how they will be sent to a hospital after leaving the cave. July 1: Rescue divers advance into the main passageway inside the flooded cave and set up a staging area inside. Thai navy SEALs reach a bend where the kilometer- (half-mile-) long passage splits in two directions. July 2: Two expert British cave divers locate the missing boys and their coach. They record video of the boys talking with them. July 3: The videos are released and show the boys taking turns introducing themselves, folding their hands together in a traditional Thai greeting and saying their names. The boys also say they are healthy. July 4: Seven navy SEALs and a doctor join the boys with food and medicine. Options are discussed about whether the boys should be taken out of the cave with divers soon or kept in place until conditions improve. July 5: The boys continue with diving lessons in case a decision is made to extract them through a route that is partially underwater. The effort to pump out water in increased. July 6: Officials indicate that they favor extracting the boys as soon as possible, fearing further danger if they are forced to stay inside by more rain causing additional flooding. Concern increases about falling oxygen levels inside the cave. A former navy SEAL aiding the rescue effort dies from a lack of oxygen during his mission. July 7: Officials suggest that an underwater evacuation will be made in the following few days because of predictions of a rainstorm. However, they say the boys' diving skills are not yet where they need to be. July 8: The official heading the rescue operation declares that "D-Day" has arrived as he announces the start of the operation to bring the boys and their coach out of the cave. Divers take four of the boys out through tight passages and flooded caverns. July 9: Divers take four more boys to safety during the second day of the rescue operation. This leaves four boys and their coach still inside the cave. July 10: On the third day of the rescue operation, divers bring out the remaining four boys and their coach, ending an ordeal that lasted more than two weeks.

"The kids are footballers so they have high immune systems," Mr Jedsada said. "Everyone is in high spirits and are happy to get out. But we will have a psychiatrist to evaluate them."

It could be at least seven days before they can be released from hospital, Mr Jesada told a news conference.

Family members have seen at least some of the boys from behind a glass isolation barrier, and Mr Jedsada said doctors may let the boys walk around their beds on Tuesday.

Mr Jedsada said they were uncertain what type of infections the boys could face "because we have never experienced this kind of issue from a deep cave.

The second group of four rescued on Monday are aged 12 to 14.

Monday's rescue effort took about nine hours, two fewer than the day before, in a sign of growing confidence and expertise.

The boys and their coach went exploring in the massive cave on June 23 after football practice, and were cut off when a rainstorm flooded the cave.

A massive international search operation was launched and it took 10 days to locate the boys, who were found hungry and huddled on a dry slope deep in the complex.

The only way to reach them was by navigating dark and tight passageways filled with muddy water and strong currents, as well as oxygen-depleted air.

Getting out via the same route was the only feasible option, but a high-risk one, Thai officials said. Experienced cave rescue experts consider an underwater escape a last resort, especially with people untrained in diving, as the boys were.

The search and rescue operation has riveted people both in Thailand and internationally, with journalists from across the globe travelling to this town along the border with Burma to report on the ordeal.

But the death on Friday of a former Thai navy Seal underlined the risks. The diver was working in a volunteer capacity and died on a mission to place air canisters along the passage to where the boys were waiting, necessary for divers to safely travel the five- to six-hour route.

Saman Kunan became unconscious while on the return journey from "chamber three" of the cave complex. His diving buddy was not able to revive him. His body has been taken to Bangkok airport and he will receive a royal-sponsored funeral.

The football coach trapped in the cave with boys has apologised to their parents in a letter he and the team have sent out through divers.

The 25-year-old coach said: "To the parents of all the kids, right now the kids are all fine, the crew are taking good care. I promise I will care for the kids as best as possible. I want to say thanks for all the support and I want to apologise to the parents."

The boys also wrote they were doing well and missing their families.