The World celebrates New Year’s Eve
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The New Year celebrations have started across the globe.
Samoa,the tiny pacific island was the first country to welcome in 2018, with New Zealand following an hour later.
Half a tonn of fireworks were set off from Auckland’s Sky Tower as the clock struck midnight at 11am GMT.
Meanwhile, Australians welcomed 2018 with a rainbow-themed fireworks in Sydney.
About 1.6 million people attended the fireworks around the edge of Sydney Harbour ..
Cities across the world gradually sign off 2017 and welcomed the new year, 2018 starting in the Pacific, heading across Asia, then Europe and finally the Americas.
Bells rung and prayers offered at temples in Beijing, but the Gregorian calendar's New Year's celebrations are typically muted in China compared to the Lunar New Year, or Spring Festival.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for unity within the global community to tackle the overwhelming challenges and defend values shared by all.
In his message on the New Year, he said unity is indispensable to achieve the goals of making the world more safe, settling conflicts and overcoming hatred.
