New year celebrations have been in full flow in many parts of the world where 2023 has now arrived.
The Pacific nation of Kiribati was the first to welcome in the new year, followed by New Zealand an hour later – and thousands gathered in Sydney for the Australian city’s renowned fireworks display.
Later, as the new year swept west through Europe and Africa, more cities welcomed 2023 with large crowds, fireworks, concerts and parties.
In Bangkok, Thailand, fireworks explode over Wat Arun Buddhist templeA man and a child celebrate together in Kuala Lumpur, MalaysiaPeople in Wuhan, China, release balloons as they gather to celebrate amid a rise of Covid-19 cases in the countrySydney’s fireworks launched from its Harbour Bridge, Opera House and barges in its famous harbourPeople had gathered early to get a prime spot for the Sydney eventLondon’s fireworks display – watched by a crowd of 100,000 – saw a tribute to the late Queen Elizabeth in dronesThe rain didn’t put people off in Edinburgh as tens of thousands of revellers gathered in Princes Street Gardens for the first Hogmanay celebrations in three yearsIn Paris, a light and fireworks show was displayed on the Arc de Triomphe as revellers gathered on the Champs-ElyseesIn Russia, people gather in central Moscow. The authorities closed the city’s famous Red Square, citing Covid restrictions while increasing the police presence in the areaIn the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, a family gathers next to a Christmas tree to celebrate the new year before a curfew, amid Russia’s attacks on the countryViking re-enactors use flaming torches during the Flamborough Fire Festival, a Viking themed parade in aid of charities and local community groups near Bridlington, YorkshireOn the other side of the world, young people in Sri Lanka’s capital Colombo do the same with firecrackersIn Dubai, Burj Khalifa – the tallest building in the world – was the focus of United Arab Emirates’s celebrationsJoyful faces in Quezon City, near to Manila in the Philippines, as people record the turn of the yearLocals of Mathare, one of Kenya’s poorest settlements, hold a mass to welcome the new year in Nairobi, KenyaA woman eats grapes in Madrid, a new year tradition in SpainPeople gather to celebrate the clocks turning midnight in Seoul, South KoreaRevellers release balloons as they take part in celebrations in Tokyo, JapanFireworks explode over Victoria Harbour to celebrate in Hong Kong,I In Taiwan, fireworks light up the skyline from the Taipei 101 buildingThe sky over the temple of Parthenon atop the Acropolis hill in Athens, GreeceA person wears festive glasses during celebrations in Times Square, New York
