Sydney brings in New Year with nod to victims of Bondi terror attack

Sydney begins 2026 with a fireworks display held under an enhanced police presence, weeks after terrorists killed 15 people at a Hanukkah celebration event in the city.

Sydney’s annual New Year’s Eve celebrations are known globally for their spectacular fireworks, with 40,000 pyrotechnic effects stretching seven kilometers (four miles) across buildings and barges along its harbor, including the city’s iconic Harbour Bridge and Opera House.

At this year’s ceremony, organizers hold a minute of silence for the victims of the attack at 11 p.m. local time (2 p.m. Israel time), with the Harbour Bridge lit up in white and a menorah projected onto its pylons.

“After a tragic end to the year for our city, we hope that New Year’s Eve will provide an opportunity to come together and look with hope for a peaceful and happy 2026,” Sydney’s Lord Mayor Clover Moore says ahead of the event.

Traditional Christmas celebrations at Bondi were likewise muted this year, and several New Year events planned there were canceled.

Around 3,000 police, some carrying long arms, are deployed in the city during the main New Year celebrations, which typically attract over a million revelers.

“We have to show defiance in the face of this terrible crime and say that we’re not going to be cowed by this kind of terrorism, and we’re not going to change the way we live our life in our beautiful city,” New South Wales Premier Chris Minns says.