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Summary: Lance Corporal Willie Apiata, a New Zealand Special Air Service trooper, was trapped at the front of a major fire-fight with suspected Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan. One of his mates was bleeding to death and the other was pinned down under intense enemy fire. Apiata performed an act of courage that saw him become the first recipient of the Victoria Cross for New Zealand and the 14th holder of the Commonwealth's highest honour for bravery since the end of the Second World War.