Australia welcomes New Year with fireworks over Sydney Harbour Bridge

Sydney welcomed in the New Year with the traditional fireworks over Sydney Harbour Bridge.

Australia and New Zealand were among the first nations to ring in 2024 as ongoing wars in Ukraine and Gaza cast a pall over celebrations and heightened tensions across parts of the world.

In Australia, the Sydney Harbour Bridge was the focal point of a renowned midnight fireworks display and light show viewed annually by around 425 million people worldwide, according to city authorities.

More police than ever have been deployed throughout Sydney to ensure safety as more than 1 million people — equivalent to one in five of the city’s population — converge on the harbour waterfront for the best available views, state government authorities said in a statement.

Many revellers had been camping at the best vantage points since Sunday morning.

The waterfront has been the scene of heated pro-Palestinian protests after the sails of the Sydney Opera House were illuminated in the colours of the Israeli flag in response to the October 7 attack by Palestinian militant group Hamas that triggered the war.