7:54 p.m
Attack in Cologne foiled: three arrests
Attack in Cologne foiled by German police, who arrested three suspected members of an Islamist terrorist cell. The target, reports Bild, was Cologne Cathedral, which was supposed to be hit by a car on New Year's Eve. The arrests followed those before Christmas, when intelligence reports raised concerns about possible terrorist attacks.
7:17 p.m
Kiribati Atoll is the first atoll to celebrate 2024
It is Kiritimati in the Kiribati archipelago in Oceania, the first country in the world to celebrate New Year's Eve. In fact, the year 2024 began at 11 a.m. (in Italy) for the atoll, which is part of an archipelago with three time zones. The year 2023 ends at 12 p.m. in New Zealand, then at 2 p.m. on the east coast of Australia. At 4 p.m. it will be the turn of Japan and South Korea. India and Sri Lanka celebrate the beginning of the New Year at 7:30 p.m. Brazil and Argentina will join Italy in toasting at 4am, while the US East Coast will celebrate at 6am tomorrow. The year 2023 will finally say goodbye to Baker Island in the central Pacific on January 2nd at 1 p.m.