MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Drummers pounded in the New Year and a stampede of computer-generated horses was shown over a section of the Great Wall as China and the rest of East Asia marked the start of 2026.
Temple bells rang across Japan, and some climbed mountains to see the year’s first sunrise. Hong Kong held subdued celebrations following a recent fire that killed 161 people at an apartment complex.
Sydney saluted the new year with joy and defiance, as the famous Harbor Bridge crackled with fireworks less than three weeks after Australia’s worst mass shooting in almost 30 years.
South Pacific countries were the first to bid farewell to 2025. New Zealand’s capital, Auckland, held a fireworks display 18 hours before the ball drop in New York’s Times Square.
Defiance in Australia
A heavy police presence monitored the thousands watching the fireworks show in Sydney. Many officers openly carried rapid-fire rifles, a first for the event, after two gunmen targeted a Hannukah celebration at Bondi Beach on Dec. 14, killing 15 and wounding 40.
An hour before midnight, the victims of the massacre were commemorated with a minute of silence, and the crowd was invited to show solidarity with Australia’s Jewish community.
New South Wales Premier Chris Minns had urged Sydney residents not to stay away from the festivities due to fear, saying extremists would interpret smaller crowds as a victory: “We have to show defiance in the face of this terrible crime.”
Indonesia and Hong Kong hold subdued events
Cities around Indonesia scaled back festivities in solidarity with communities devastated by floods and landslides in parts of Sumatra island a month ago, claiming more than 1,100 lives. Concerts and fireworks on the tourist island of Bali were replaced with a cultural event featuring traditional dances.
Hong Kong rang in 2026 without the usual fireworks spectacle over Victoria Harbor after the massive fire in November. Facades of landmarks instead were turned into countdown clocks that presented a light show at midnight.
In Japan, where fireworks aren’t a traditional part of festivities, temple bells rang across the country. Others ate noodles in a traditional wish for long life because of the noodle’s shape. In South Korea’s capital, Seoul, a bell tolled at the Bosingak Pavilion.
Displaced Gazans hope for end to war
Palestinians in Gaza said they hope the new year brings a definitive end to the war between Israel and Hamas that has battered the enclave for two years, as negotiators push for progress into the ceasefire’s challenging second phase.
“We hope that it will be a good year for our people in Palestine,” said Faraj Rasheed, noting that thousands continue to live in harsh conditions in tent camps.
Others described 2025 as a year of loss. “The war humiliated us,” said Mirvat Abed Al-Aal, displaced from the southern city of Rafah.
From Sydney to Paris to New York City, crowds rang in the new year with exuberant celebrations filled with thunderous fireworks or light shows, while others took a more subdued approach.
As the clock struck midnight in Japan, temple bells rang and some climbed mountains to see the year’s first sunrise, while a light show with somersaulting jet skis twinkled in Dubai. The countdown to 2026 was projected onto the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, while in Moscow people celebrated in the snow.
Around Europe
Pope Leo XIV closed out the year with a plea for the city of Rome to welcome foreigners and the fragile. Fireworks erupted over European landmarks, from the Colosseum in Rome to the London Eye.
In Paris, revelers converged around the glittering Champs-Élysées avenue. Taissiya Girda, a 27-year-old tourist from Kazakhstan, expressed hope for a calmer 2026.
“I would like to see happy people around me, no war anywhere,” she said. “Russia, Ukraine, Palestine, Israel, I want everybody to be happy and in peace.”
In Scotland, where New Year’s is known as Hogmanay, First Minister John Swinney urged Scots to follow the message of “Auld Lang Syne” by national poet Robert Burns and show small acts of kindness.
Greece and Cyprus turned down the volume, replacing traditional fireworks with low-noise pyrotechnics in capitals. Officials said the change was intended to make celebrations more welcoming for children and pets.
Ball drop in New York City
Crowds bundled up against the chilly temperatures cheered and embraced as the New Year’s Eve ball covered in more than 5,000 crystals descended down a pole and confetti fell in Times Square.
Revelers wearing tall celebratory hats and light-up necklaces had waited for hours to see the 12,350-pound (5,602-kilograms) ball drop. The festivities also included Tones and I performing John Lennon’s “Imagine” just before midnight.
The television hosts interviewed visitors who were attending from such places as Florida, Mexico and South Korea, and read people’s wishes for the new year. A sixth grader from Dallas, Texas, told one of the hosts that he wants to get good grades in 2026 and have a better year.
Police in the city had planned additional anti-terrorism measures at the ball drop, with “mobile screening teams.” It was not in response to a specific threat, according to NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch.
Moments after the ball dropped it rose again, sparkling in red, white and blue, to mark the country’s upcoming 250th birthday.
A few miles away in a decommissioned subway station, Zohran Mamdani was sworn in as mayor during a private event just after midnight Thursday.
___
