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New Year: the planet celebrates the arrival of 2021, still under the sign of the coronavirus

2020-12-31T23:04:34.560Z


From Sydney to Rome, people most often attended fireworks and online or virtual festivities, epidemic obliges.


The planet began this Thursday to turn the page on 2020. A dark year because it was marked by the Covid-19 pandemic which forced billions of people to celebrate in small groups the passage to the New Year. The new epidemic waves have even forced the majority to follow the celebrations from their sofa, already broken by months of restrictions or even confinement due to Covid-19 which has killed at least 1.7 million people worldwide since its appearance last December.

READ ALSO>

New Year's Eve under curfew: the party despite everything


The small

archipelago of Kiribati

and

the Samoa islands

in the Pacific were the first to switch at 10 a.m. (GMT) in 2021, while the uninhabited islands of

Howland

and

Baker

will have to wait another 26 hours.

The

New Zealand

followed an hour later, with large crowds gathered in Auckland to attend a fireworks display.

Only a few restrictions remain in force, making this country one of the few on the planet where residents can celebrate the transition to 2021 without a screen interposed.

VIDEO.

New Zealand: Auckland celebrates the transition to 2021 with fireworks

Although largely untouched by the pandemic, the nations of the Pacific are experiencing a new kind of New Year due to border closures, curfews and containment.

In Sydney,

Australia's

largest city

, the famous New Year's Eve fireworks display was fired at 1 p.m. GMT (2 p.m. KST) over the Bay, albeit with a near total absence of spectators. after the appearance of a recent outbreak of contamination in the north of the city, which totals some 150 cases.

Fireworks were fired over the Sydney Opera House on December 31, despite the outbreak / REUTERS / NSW Government / Mick Tsikas  

The plan to allow 5,000 people working on the front lines in the fight against the epidemic to attend, to thank them for their efforts, has even been abandoned.

"Everyone is looking forward to 2021 as a new start," said Karen Roberts, one of the few spectators to be admitted to a bar near the famous Sydney Opera House.

Thousands of people gathered in Wuhan

In

Hong Kong

, despite the restrictions, a few revelers have ventured to the Victoria Harbor waterfront to take selfies.

In

Tokyo

, where residents face the prospect of imposing a state of emergency after a record 1,300 new infections daily, people lined up with masks and face guards to offer New Year's prayers. Year.

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The city of

Wuhan

, China, where the virus first emerged in late 2019, has seen thousands of people gather to celebrate the New Year.

Once the coronavirus epicenter, thousands pack Wuhan, China and let go of balloons to celebrate the New Year https://t.co/pGCGxRvTOo pic.twitter.com/Uo01IlWMUA

- CBS News (@CBSNews) December 31, 2020

Same scenes in Taipei, the capital of

Taiwan,

which also hosted a more traditional celebration, with crowds gathering to watch fireworks.

The second half of the Taipei 101 fireworks was pretty awesome :) Happy New Year everyone!

pic.twitter.com/0SsOQA6CMV

- Natalie Tso (@TsoNatalie) December 31, 2020

Elsewhere the mood was much more depressing.

In

Russia

, President Vladimir Putin admitted in his New Year's speech that a second wave of infections was hitting the nation.

“Unfortunately, the epidemic has not yet been completely stopped.

The fight against the epidemic does not stop for a minute, ”he said.

VIDEO: Before plunging into Lake Baikal to ring in 2021, these Russians, endearingly called "walruses", run several kilometers through #Siberia in swimsuits and holiday costumes, with temperatures hovering around -33 degrees C (-27 degrees F) pic.twitter .com / iPMIp5YZ2B

- AFP News Agency (@AFP) December 31, 2020

Shortly before, around ten people swam in the icy waters of Lake Baikal in Siberia, as they do every year, braving extreme temperatures ranging between -26 and -35 ° C.

31st celebrations prohibited in Italy

From

France

to

Latvia

via

Brazil

, police and, in some cases, soldiers have been deployed to ensure compliance with curfews or ban on gatherings.

As in

Italy

, subject to confinement until January 7 and a curfew from 10 p.m., where the 31st celebrations were prohibited in both public and private places.

READ ALSO>

New Year's Eve: "I'll be alone in front of my TV"


In

London

, badly affected, the 74-year-old American singer Patti Smith was to give a livestream concert, in tribute to caregivers of the NHS, the public health system of the United Kingdom, who died of Covid-19.

But its giant screen live broadcast at Piccadilly Circus was canceled at the last minute due to a pandemic, and its fans had to settle for YouTube.

Happy new year 2021


Dubai Burj Khalifa pic.twitter.com/Go9PWcoiLU

- ishaq khan (@ ishaq_khan01) December 31, 2020

In

Dubai

, thousands of people are expected to witness a fireworks and laser show at Burj Khalifa, the tallest tower in the world, despite new cases.

All people will need to wear a mask or register using a QR code.

In

Beirut

, still reeling from the deadly and devastating August 4 explosion, authorities also relaxed measures.

The curfew was pushed back to 3 a.m.

Bars, restaurants and nightclubs have reopened and are having big New Years parties.

All over the world, a difficult tomorrow is feared.

In

Brazil, the

second most bereaved country in the world, doctors fear a new wave.

Videos of people partying without masks were circulating on social networks, and television broadcast images of police closing bars crowded with customers.

Source: leparis

All life articles on 2020-12-31

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