New Year’s Eve 2026 celebrations begin as the new year dawns

On the other side of the world, 2026 has already arrived. Countries in the South Pacific started ringing in the new year, and midnight struck New Zealand a full 18 hours before the ball kicked in. New York’s Times Square.

In Auckland, New Zealanders welcomed 2026 with a fireworks display launched from the country’s tallest building, the Sky Tower, in a celebration that drew thousands despite the rain.

The five-minute pyrotechnic display involved 3,500 fireworks launched from various floors of the 787-meter tower. Small community events were canceled in New Zealand’s North Island on Wednesday due to bad weather.

Australia’s east coast welcomed 2026 just two hours later, but in Sydney, the country’s largest city, celebrations took place amid Australia’s deadliest mass shooting in nearly 30 years. Two gunmen targeted a Hannukah celebration at Bondi Beach on December 14, killing 15 people in what authorities called An ISIS-inspired, antisemitic terror attack.

Officials said more than 2,500 police officers would be on hand to patrol the area near Sydney’s famous harbor, the center of New Year’s Eve celebrations. Many had to openly carry automatic weapons, which is not often seen in Sydney.

Thousands of people thronged the waterfront to watch the fireworks display centered on the Sydney Harbor Bridge.

An hour before midnight, the victims of the massacre were remembered in a minute of silence, while pictures of menorahs were displayed on the walls of the bridge. The crowd was invited to show solidarity with the Australian Jewish community by lighting their torches across the harbour.

New South Wales Premier Chris Minns has urged Sydney residents not to live in fear, saying extremists will interpret the crowds at New Year’s Eve celebrations as a victory.

“We will not be in a situation where this terrible, criminal, terrorist incident changes the way we live in our beautiful city,” Minss told reporters on Wednesday. “We must show contempt for this horrible crime and say that we will no longer be intimidated by this type of terrorism.”

In Indonesia, one of Australia’s closest neighbours, cities are canceling New Year’s Eve celebrations as an act of solidarity with devastated communities. catastrophic floods and landslides which hit parts of the island of Sumatra last month, killing more than 1,100 people.

The capital, Jakarta, will not enter 2026 in the usual way, opting for modest celebrations with a calm and thoughtful program focused on the prayers of the victims, said Gov. Pramono Anung last week. Concerts and fireworks on the Indonesian tourist island of Bali have been canceled and replaced by a cultural event featuring 65 traditional dance groups.

Hong Kong, too, would mourn 2026 without a spectacular and colorful explosion in the sky over its Victoria Harbour, after a major explosion. a fire tore through the residence in November and killed at least 161 people.

The city’s tourism board instead hosted a music program featuring soft rock duo Air Supply and other artists in Central, the business district. The front of the eight landmarks would turn into large countdown clocks that would launch a three-minute midnight light show.

Many parts of Asia welcome the new year by keeping old traditions.

In Japan, crowds will gather at a Buddhist temple in Tokyo for the midnight bell ringing. In the South Korean capital of Seoul, the tolling and countdown ceremony will be held at the Bosingak Pavilion.

Chinese President Xi Jinping in a New Year’s Eve speech broadcast by state media praised his country’s technological progress in areas such as artificial intelligence and semiconductors while revitalizing. threats against Taiwanwhich is part of its jurisdiction.

“We Chinese on both sides of the Taiwan Strait share blood and kinship,” he said.

“The reunification of our country, which is the trend of the times, cannot be stopped,” Xi said, as his country’s military announced the end. large-scale military exercises around Taiwan condemned by the island’s democratic leadership as “provocative and reckless.”

Although much of the United States remained dormant, preparations were well underway for celebrations in major cities and towns across the country – including New Orleanswhere a The New Year’s Day terrorist attack last year 14 people died.

The deployment of the National Guard authorized by President Trump began on Tuesday, as part of tighter security for New Year’s celebrations in the “Big Easy” a year after an attack targeted revelers in the early hours of Jan. 1, 2025, on Bourbon Street.