The soldier who died in Afghanistan last week has been laid to rest with full military honours at a tiny Northland marae.
Corporal Douglas Hughes, the fifth New Zealand soldier to die in Afghanistan, was buried at the Northland settlement of Pakotai today.
Corporal Hughes, 26, died while off duty last week in what has been described as a non-combat fatality.
The cause of his death has not been disclosed.
Questions about the young man's death were off-limits for the media today as military personnel concentrated on supporting Corporal Hughes' family.