Pictures of the world ushering in 2022, as omicron weighs on New Year celebrations

From Sydney to Shanghai and Paris to New York, the world ushered in 2022 with New Year celebrations that were largely overshadowed by pandemic concerns — even as uncertainty looms and the omicron variant continues to drive up infections globally.

Australia and New Zealand were among the first to ring in the new year, followed by countries in Asia, Europe and North America.

Under the cloud of Covid-19, the world ushers in New Year’s Day.

Spectacular fireworks exploded over the Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge as Australia welcomed 2022. Queues were already forming at many vantage points since early morning on Dec. 31, according to Reuters. Local media reported that the country’s most populous state New South Wales recorded 22,577 new Covid cases and four deaths, as the number of patients in intensive care increased.

In New Zealand, restrictions on public gatherings in Auckland were eased on Dec. 30 at 11:59 pm local time, ahead of New Year’s day. The traditional fireworks were canceled due to fears of revelers gathering. Instead, there was a light show over Auckland Harbour Bridge, the Sky Tower and the Auckland War Memorial Museum from 9 p.m. to midnight local time.

It comes as Covid-19 infections around the world surpass 287 million, and deaths top 5.4 million globally, according to data by Johns Hopkins University. Just two days earlier, the World Health Organization warned of a “tsunami of cases” as omicron and delta circulate at the same time.

Celebrations took place in New York City on New Year’s Eve, although they were scaled down and the vaccinated crowd had to observe social distancing rules and wear masks. On-site spectators of about 15,000 people were allowed to gather in Times Square to witness the annual ball drop and welcome 2022.

Covid cases in the city and around the country may have hit record highs, but New York Mayor Bill de Blasio told NBC on Thursday: “We want to show that we’re moving forward, and we want to show the world that New York City is fighting our way through this.”

From Nanjing to Wuhan, Chinese cities canceled New Year’s Eve celebrations in a bid to stem the spread of infections, according to the South China Morning Post.

China continues to battle Covid-19 with its “zero tolerance” policy, and ended 2021 with the highest weekly Covid cases since taming the original epidemic about two years ago, according to Reuters.

The total number of local symptomatic cases in the mainland this past week reached 1,151, after 175 new community infections with clinical symptoms were reported for Dec. 31, the news agency said citing statistics from the National Health Commission.