New Zealand soldier who joined Ukraine foreign legion confirmed killed

Tributes paid to Dominic Abelen, the first New Zealander to die in the conflict, who was on leave without pay from the defence force

A New Zealand soldier who was on leave without pay from his country's army when he was killed in Ukraine has become the latest foreign fighter and first New Zealander to die in the war.

Friends of Cpl Dominic Abelen, 30, told the Guardian he had enlisted with Ukraine's international legion, joining thousands of soldiers who have travelled to the conflict from around the world in the months since Ukraine's government called for volunteers.