Overview

• New Year's Eve celebrations spanned across 39 time zones with major cities around the world marking the arrival of 2024 with fireworks and light shows.
• In New York City, thousands gathered in Times Square to watch the iconic ball drop, while heightened security measures were in place due to near-daily protests sparked by the Israel-Hamas war.
• In France, 90,000 police and security officers were deployed for the New Year's Eve celebrations, which included a light show projected onto the Arc de Triomphe.
• China celebrated relatively quietly due to safety and pollution concerns, while President Xi Jinping pledged in his New Year address that China would 'surely be reunified' with Taiwan.
• Ongoing wars in Gaza and Ukraine cast a shadow over the celebrations, with Israeli strikes in the Gaza Strip killing at least 35 people and Russia's military actions in Ukraine causing local authorities to cancel firework displays.