| |
Sydney welcomes 2007
An estimated one million people throng to Sydney Harbor for huge fireworks show, kicking off start of New Year celebrations from Asia to the Americas. Meanwhile, in Thailand, series of coordinated explosions rip through capital Bangkok, killing two people and injuring more than 20
AFP
An estimated one million people have thronged to Sydney Harbor for a huge fireworks show, kicking off the start of New Year celebrations from Asia to the Americas.
The celebrations came as reports of violence emerged from Thailand, with a series of coordinated explosions which ripped through the capital Bangkok killing two people and injuring more than 20.
| New Year in Thailand |
|
| 2 dead as bombs blasts rock Bangkok / Associated Press |
|
Six or more bomb blasts rock Thai capital on New Year's Eve, killing at least two people and injuring more than 20, police and health officials say; culprits and motive are unknown |
| Full story |
|
|
|
In Sydney, police said all vantage points around the shoreline were at or near capacity as some 3,000 kilograms (6,610 pounds) of fireworks exploded overhead in a display which centred on the city's iconic Harbour Bridge.
Thousands began streaming into the city centre from early morning, with street parties erupting spontaneously well before the stroke of midnight.
In New Zealand, which welcomed 2007 two hours earlier (at 1100 GMT), celebrations were hampered by unseasonably cold weather and rain.
An annual outdoor New Year's Eve party in the capital Wellington was cancelled due to rain and some of the coldest summer temperatures on record.
Fireworks show in Sydney (Photo: Reuters)
Street celebrations were expected across the Asia-Pacific region at the end of a year when the area grew in stature on the world stage.
In Hong Kong, revellers awaited the new year with a mixture of anticipation and anxiety as midnight heralded sweeping new anti-smoking laws that technically made puffing party goers liable to an on-the-spot-fine.
The new law was passed earlier in the year to a chorus of disapproval from bar owners who feared it would eat into their profits.
Smoking restrictions aside, hundreds of thousands of revellers descended on the downtown Lan Kwai Fong bar area and along the harbourside to watch the annual midnight fireworks display. Last year's fireworks attracted more than half a million people.
Police deployed extra manpower in Lan Kwai Fong - where 23 people died in a new year scuffle in 1992 - and the Wan Chai red light district.
In the Indian capital, security was tight in the run-up to 2007, and police said Sunday they had arrested two Islamic militants armed with explosives at a New Delhi railway station.
Residents flocked to Connaught Place, the city's commercial centre and a hub for New Year festivities including a spectacular evening laser light show. Families thronged the white colonial-era colonnades, strolling around and eating ice cream.
In China, whose growing global power marked 2006, President Hu Jintao watched the Beijing Opera to celebrate the New Year, according to state media. Nearly one thousand others joined him, including Premier Wen Jiabao.
Nearby Taiwan, which has been plagued by high-profile political scandals, prepared to usher in 2007 by attempting a world drum-beating record.
"We hope at least 8,000 people would take part in the world record-breaking event," a government official said.
In Indonesia, thousands of mostly young people crowded Bay City stadium in Ancol district of Jakarta for an open air concert.
Residents also gathered with traditional paper trumpets and saxophones to welcome 2007 at the main Hotel Indonesia roundabout in the city centre which is a popular site for demonstrations the rest of the year.
Japan's capital Tokyo was unusually tranquil on New Year's Eve, with normally clogged roads free of heavy traffic as urban denizens returned to home towns to mark the end of a year that saw Shinzo Abe elected prime minister.
In South Korea, people flocked to parks, hills and beaches to see in the New Year. Arch rival North Korea, which caused global consternation by testing a nuclear bomb in October, issued celebratory stamps, according to its state media.
The New Year coincides with the Muslim festival of Eid al-Adha, creating the opportunity for a double celebration in Muslim-majority countries such as Indonesia and Pakistan.
In Europe, fierce storms and strong winds could force the cancellation of some open-air celebrations in Britain over safety concerns. Tens of thousands are expected to attend a major fireworks display in London -- if it goes ahead.
Across the Atlantic, a vast crowd is expected in Times Square in New York at the end of a tumultuous year for the US over the war in Iraq.
AP contributed to the report
|
RSS
