Auckland rang in 2026 with a downtown fireworks display launched from New Zealandโs tallest structure, Sky Tower, making it the first major city to greet the new year at a celebration dampened by rain.
South Pacific countries are the first to bid farewell to 2025. Clocks strike midnight in Auckland, a population of 1.7 million, 18 hours before the famous ball drops in New Yorkโs Times Square.
The five-minute display involved 3,500 fireworks launched from various floors of the 240-meter (787-foot) Sky Tower. Smaller community events were canceled across New Zealandโs North Island on Wednesday due to forecasts of rain and possible thunderstorms.
Australians defiant after mass shooting
Australiaโs east coast welcomes 2026 two hours after New Zealand, but in Sydney, the countryโs largest city, celebrations will be held under the pall of Australiaโs worst mass shooting in almost 30 years. Two gunmen targeted a Hannukah celebration at Bondi Beach on Dec. 14, killing 15 and wounding 40.
A heavy police presence monitored the thousands who thronged to the downtown waterfront on Wednesday to watch a fireworks show centered on the Sydney Harbor Bridge. Many officers openly carried rapid-fire rifles, in a first for the annual event.
An hour before midnight, the massacre victims will be commemorated with one minute of silence while images of a menorah are projected on the bridge pylons. The crowd has been invited to show their solidarity with Australiaโs Jewish community by shining their phone torches across the harbor.
New South Wales Premier Chris Minns urged Sydney residents not to stay away through fear, saying extremists would interpret smaller crowds at New Yearโs Eve festivities as a victory.
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โWe canโt be in a situation where this horrible, criminal, terrorist event changes the way we live in our beautiful city,โ Minns told reporters on Wednesday.
โWe have to show defiance in the face of this terrible crime and say that weโre not going to be cowered by this kind of terrorism,โ he added.
Chinaโs Xi renews threats against Taiwan
In Indonesia, one of Australiaโs nearest neighbors, cities scaled back New Yearโs Eve festivities as a gesture of solidarity with communities devastated by catastrophic floods and landslides that struck parts of Sumatra island a month ago, claiming more than 1,100 lives.
The capital, Jakarta, will not ring in 2026 with its usual fanfare, choosing instead subdued celebrations with a calm and reflective program centered on prayers for victims, city Gov. Pramono Anung said last week.
Makassar Mayor Munafri Arifuddin urged residents of one of Indonesiaโs largest cities to forgo parties altogether, calling for prayer and reflection instead. โEmpathy and restraint are more meaningful than fireworks and crowds,โ he said.
Concerts and fireworks on Indonesiaโs tourist island of Bali have been canceled and replaced with a cultural arts event featuring 65 groups performing traditional dances.
Hong Kong, too, will ring in 2026 without the usual spectacular and colorful explosions in the sky over its iconic Victoria Harbor, after a massive fire in November killed at least 161 people.
The cityโs tourism board will instead host a music show featuring soft rock duo Air Supply and other singers in Central, a business district. The facades of eight landmarks will turn into giant countdown clocks presenting a three-minute light show at midnight.
Many parts of Asia welcome the new year by observing age-old traditions.
In Japan, crowds will gather at a Buddhist temple in Tokyo for a bell striking at midnight. In the South Korean capital Seoul, a bell tolling and countdown ceremony will be held at the Bosingak Pavilion.
Chinaโs Xi renews threats against Taiwan
Chinese President Xi Jinping in a New Yearโs Eve address broadcast by state media hailed his countryโs technological progress in areas such as artificial intelligence and semiconductors while renewing threats against Taiwan, which it claims as part of its sovereign territory.
โWe Chinese on both sides of the Taiwan Strait share a bond of blood and kinship,โ he said. โThe reunification of our motherland, a trend of the times, is unstoppable.โ China this week launched large-scale military drills around the island.
Berliners celebrate in snow
Tourists and Berliners alike marked the end of 2025 by enjoying snowfall, taking selfies and making snowmen in front of the German capitalโs cathedral and the iconic Brandenburg Gate. The famous Berlin TV Tower was nearly invisible thanks to the falling flakes and fog.
© 2025 The Canadian Press
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