New Zealand marks Anzac Day with commemorative activities

WELLINGTON: New Zealanders marked Anzac Day on Tuesday by attending services held nationwide to honour Australian and New Zealand soldiers who formed part of the allied expedition that set out to capture the Gallipoli peninsula in 1915 during World War I.

The National Commemorative Service was held in the National War Memorial Park in Wellington, reports Xinhua news agency.

"Anzac Day...starts with Gallipoli and with World War I but it's actually come to mean a lot more that," said Prime Minister Chris Hipkins.

Anzac Day, which is celebrated on April 25, marks the anniversary of the first major military action fought by Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (Anzac) in World War I on Turkey's Gallipoli peninsula in 1915.

The day, dubbed as "the national day of unity", is traditionally observed with dawn services, commemorative marches and remembrance services.

New Zealanders across the country were encouraged to "find a way to mark Anzac Day", said Minister for Veterans Meka Whaitiri.

"Anzac Day commemorates all those who have served, and those who continue to do so," Whaitiri said, adding Kiwis around the world should pause and acknowledge that service on the day of reflection.

"There is a personal cost in every global conflict, and together we should unify around those who paid the ultimate price, as well as acknowledging New Zealanders who returned home changed by the mental and physical scars of conflict," she said.

The commitment embodied in Anzac Day was also reflected in the New Zealand Defense Force's response to Cyclone Gabrielle which wreaked havoc in February in the North Island, she said.