Australia and New Zealand honour military in Anzac Day memorial services

Waverly College cadets attend the ANZAC Day dawn service at Coogee Beach in Sydney, Australia, April 25, 2025. REUTERS/Hollie Adams

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Thousands gathered across Australia and New Zealand on Friday for Anzac Day, a public holiday commemorating military service members who fought and died during wartime.

Anzac Day originally marked the nations' role in an ultimately unsuccessful campaign to capture the Gallipoli Peninsula in Turkey during World War One, which resulted in 130,000 deaths on both sides of the conflict.