Fireworks explode over Marina Bay during New Year’s Eve celebrations in Singapore
The sky glows red as bushfires continue to rage in Mallacoota, Victoria, Australia.
A reveller wears glasses shaped like the year 2020 during the New Year’s Eve party in Quezon City
Riot police officers detain an anti-government protester during a demonstration on New Year’s Eve outside Mong Kok police station in Hong Kong.
A man takes part in the event of New Year’s Eve countdown celebration at Shougang Industrial Park, one of the venues for the Beijing 2022 Olympics, in Beijing
More than 100,000 fireworks will light up the skyline for spectators crowding foreshores and parks
Partygoers celebrate during Auckland New Year’s Eve celebrations on December 31, 2019 in Auckland,
File Photo- Fireworks explode over the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Opera House in the 9pm display during New Year’s Eve celebrations
Fireworks explode over the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Opera House
Fireworks explode over the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Opera House in the 9pm display during New Year’s Eve celebrations
Fireworks light up the sky during the new year celebrations in Wellington, New Zealand
People attend new year celebrations at waterfront in Wellington, New Zealand
Fireworks light up the sky during the new year celebrations in Wellington
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A Palestinian youth performs a handstand on a beach during the last sunset of 2019, in Gaza City
A couple poses for a picture in front of a 2020 luminous sign during New Year’s Eve in Seoul
Fireworks explode over Marina Bay during New Year’s Eve celebrations in Singapore
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The world celebrated the New Year on Wednesday with fireworks displays from Sydney to London, although celebrations were clouded by deadly wildfires in Australia, protests in Hong Kong and India and new nuclear tensions with North Korea.
Large crowds gathered in European capitals for spectacular fireworks displays that lit up the skies over landmarks like Big Ben in London, the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, the Parthenon in Athens and the Kremlin in Moscow.
In Australia, a million revelers thronged Sydney harbor and nearby districts to watch more than 100,000 fireworks explode above the city, even as thousands of people along the country’s eastern seaboard sought refuge from the bushfires on beaches.
Thousands in Hong Kong welcomed 2020 on neon-lit promenades in the picturesque Victoria Harbour, breaking into pro-democracy chants shortly after the countdown to midnight.
Hong Kong authorities canceled the main midnight fireworks display for the first time in a decade, citing security concerns. A “Symphony of Lights” took place instead, involving projections on the city’s tallest skyscrapers, while smaller-scale pyrotechnics were launched from waterfront rooftops.
In Japan, people took turns striking Buddhist temple bells, in accordance with tradition
Sydney decided to press ahead with its fireworks despite calls by some members of the public for the display to be canceled in solidarity with fire-hit areas in New South Wales, of which the city is the capital.
Sydney Mayor Clover Moore said planning had begun 15 months ago and that the event also gave a boost to the economy.
Some towns in eastern Australia canceled their New Year’s celebrations as naval vessels and military helicopters helped firefighters rescue people fleeing the fires, which have turned swathes of New South Wales into a raging furnace.
Related Slideshow: New Year’s celebrations around the world (provided by Photo Services)
Tokyo, Japan
Revellers release balloons as they take part in New Year countdown event on Jan. 1.
Hohhot, China
Teachers and students draw new year pictures in the snow to welcome the new year on Dec. 31.
Ahmadabad, India
Indian school children pose for the cameras during an event to welcome the New Year on Dec. 31.
Kathmandu, Nepal
A Gurung girl wearing a traditional costume takes part in Tamu Lhosar parade, marking the beginning of the Gurung community’s new year, in Kathmandu, Nepal on Dec. 31.
Westhausen, Germany
The silhouettes of horses and riders stand against the light in front of the New Year’s Eve Chapel. Out of gratitude for the end of a cattle epidemic, riders have been riding in Westhausen for hundreds of years on traditional New Year’s Eve rides to a chapel at the edge of the village. This year the procession is taking place for the 393rd time, in Westhausen, Germany on Dec. 31.
Suzhou, China
More than 300 primary school students greet the new year’s Day 2020 with the words “2020” and “love you and love you” on the playground on Dec. 31.
Beijing, China
Performers rehearse before a New Year’s Eve countdown event at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic headquarters in Bejiing on Dec. 31.
Sao Paulo, Brazil
A runner wearing a Smurf costume gives a thumbs up before the start of the annual, end of the year Sao Silvestre race in Sao Paulo, Brazil on Dec. 31.
Tokyo, Japan
Shinto priests conduct the Oharae ceremony or the Great Purification ceremony at the Meiji Jingu shrine on Dec. 31. The Shinto ritual is held to purify people and their sins for the past year ahead of the new year.
Sydney, Australia
New Year’s Eve fireworks erupt over the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Opera House during the traditional early family fireworks show, held before the main midnight event, on Dec. 31.
Brisbane, Australia
Women pose for a selfie as they wait to watch the New Year’s Eve fireworks at Southbank on Dec. 31.
Auckland, New Zealand
Partygoers pose for a photo during New Year’s Eve celebrations on Dec. 31.
Auckland, New Zealand
Performer entertains the crowd during New Year’s Eve celebrations.
Tokyo, Japan
Shinto priests arrive for the Oharae ceremony or the Great Purification ceremony at the Meiji Jingu shrine on Dec. 31. The Shinto ritual is held to purify people and their sins of the past year ahead of the New Year.
Seoul, South Korea
People gather to celebrate New Year on Dec. 31.
Seoul, South Korea
A woman hangs a paper note bearing her New Year wishes on a wire at Jogyesa temple on Dec. 31.
Kathmandu, Nepal
Members of the indigenous Gurung community wearing traditional attire react as they take part in a New Year celebration ceremony known as “Tamu Lhosar” on Dec. 31.
Sydney, Australia
Revelers display balloons in the shape of the New Year 2020, on Dec. 31.
New York City, New York, US
New Year’s Eve ball is seen at the roof of One Times Square building during the New Year’s Eve Ball test before the official celebrations, on Dec. 30.
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Believers of Afro-Brazilian religions pay tribute to their deity Yemanjá during a traditional celebration ahead of New Year’s Eve at Vermelha Beach, on Dec. 30.
New York City, New York, US
Workers inflate balloons that will be distributed to the crowds during New Year’s Eve celebrations at Times Square, on Dec. 30.
Berlin, Germany
A street is illuminated before the New Year’s Eve Party at Brandenburg Gate, on Dec. 30.
London, England
Dancers from London School of Samba perform during the preview of the 32nd London New Year’s Parade, on Dec. 30.
Vienna, Austria
Latvian conductor Andris Nelsons conducts the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra during a rehearsal for the traditional New Year’s concert at the golden hall of Wiener Musikverein, on Dec. 30.
Damascus, Syria
The Al-Abassyeen square is lit up with lights for the New Year’s celebrations, on Dec. 30.
Berlin, Germany
German Chancellor Angela Merkel records her New Year’s speech at the Chancellery, on Dec. 30.
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
People throng the Ipanema Beach a day before the traditional Réveillon, on Dec. 30.
Skopje, Republic of Macedonia
A woman takes a selfie along a street decorated for the New Year 2020 and Christmas holidays, on Dec. 30.
Moscow, Russia
People take part in activities at the Holiday’s Market on Red Square, decorated for New Year and Orthodox Christmas, on Dec. 30.
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The fires have killed at least 11 people since October, two of them overnight into Tuesday, destroyed more than 4 million hectares (10 million acres) and left many towns and rural areas without electricity or mobile coverage.
Elsewhere, revelers from Auckland, New Zealand, to Pyongyang, the capital of isolated North Korea, welcomed the new year with fireworks displays.
But amid the celebrations of a new year and decade, old tensions threatened to flare up. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said on Wednesday his country would keep developing nuclear programs and introduce a “new strategic weapon” in the near future, after the United States missed a year-end deadline to restart denuclearization talks.
PROTESTS, BREXIT
In Hong Kong, rocked by months of sometimes violent pro-democracy demonstrations, protesters were urged to wear masks at a New Year rally called “Don’t forget 2019 – Persist in 2020,” according to social media posts.
Some 6,000 police were deployed and Hong Kong’s chief executive, Carrie Lam, appealed for calm and reconciliation in her New Year’s Eve video message.
The protests began in June in response to a now-withdrawn bill that would have allowed extraditions to mainland China, where courts are controlled by the Communist Party, and have evolved into a broader pro-democracy movement.
Thousands of Indians ushered in the year by demonstrating against a citizenship law they say will discriminate against Muslims and chip away at India’s secular constitution.
The demonstrations came despite Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s attempts to dampen protests that have run for nearly three weeks.
Irshad Alam, a 25-year-old resident of the Shaheen Bagh area of New Delhi, stood with his 1-year-old child in his arms and his wife by his side. He said he had been participating in the protest every day.
“It’s freezing here,” he said. “But we are still here because we care about this movement.”
More than three years after the UK voted to leave the European Union, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, fresh from winning a parliamentary majority in last month’s election, promised in his New Year’s message to “get Brexit done before the end of this month.”
“As we say goodbye to 2019, we can also turn the page on the division, rancour and uncertainty which has dominated public life and held us back for far too long,” Johnson added.
In New York, large crowds were gathering ahead of the annual New Year’s Eve ball drop over Times Square.
