Families watch as diggers laid to rest

Australian World War I soldiers killed in the tragic Battle of Fromelles have been
finally laid to rest in a new military cemetery in France.
The bodies of 250 Australian and British soldiers, who were killed in one of the
First World War's worst battles, were discovered in a mass grave near the northern
French town of Fromelles in 2007.
The reinterment of the soldiers found at the edge of Pheasant Wood began in January
and continued throughout February.
On Monday, on the 94th anniversary of the Battle of Fromelles, the last soldier was
laid to rest alongside his former comrades.
The Prince of Wales and the Duke of Kent, Australian Governor-General Quentin Bryce,
Minister for Veterans' Affairs Alan Griffin, and Chief of Army Lieutenant General
Kenneth Gillespie were among the dignitaries watching on as the coffin of the
unknown soldier was carried into the cemetery on a First World War wagon.
Ninety-six of the soldiers - all Australian - have been identified through DNA
testing, and have been given tombstones inscribed with their names.
A further 109 soldiers have been confirmed as having served in the Australian army
and three were British soldiers.
The remaining 42 have been classified as unknown and their headstones read: "A
soldier of the Great War. Known unto God."
Watching on alongside hundreds of family members from Australia and Britain was
27-year-old Heath Stook from Perth, whose second cousin Raymond Bishop is among the
dead.
"My grandma's been doing the DNA tests and they identified him, so it's very
moving," Ms Stook told AAP.
"It happened almost a century ago and it's still a very meaningful thing for the
family.
"I think it's extremely important that it's happened because they were heroes, they
died for their country, they did what they were told to and what was right, so
they're finally getting the appreciation they deserve."
Mr Bishop, a 20-year-old from Sydney, was classified missing in action, presumed
dead until his body was identified among the soldiers at Fromelles.
Ms Stook said her family feels like a mystery has been solved.
"He went over with two cousins and he actually fought in the battle with one of his
cousins by his side," she said.
"He was a machine gunner, and he volunteered to go out and throw hand grenades. He
went out and got shot through the leg, and he was too far to go and get him back.
"His cousin was writing letters back home to our family, which we've got copies of,
and they weren't exactly sure what happened to him. They never heard.
"They always had a little shimmer of hope that one day he might turn up back on the
doorstep because his body was never found. It's definitely a bit of closure."
Members of the public who believe they may have relatives buried at Fromelles have
until 2014 to submit DNA samples.
The Battle of Fromelles was the costliest in Australian military history, with 5533
soldiers either killed, wounded, taken prisoner or missing in just 24 hours.
An estimated 1780 Australian diggers died, while 503 British troops were killed.