point waves surfers fighting against unseen pollution. starting january seventh on t w. d w news live from berlin. where the world is ringing in the new year australia is one of the first countries to. twenty eight eighteen with this spectacular fireworks display city people hong kong they were also celebrating. also

tell you how people here in berlin are planning to welcome him twenty eight team also coming up the iranian president hassan rouhani makes his first comments on the government protests sweeping cities across the country earlier the government backed social media blocks of social media sites and threaten the crackdown will take a closer look at ronnie's reaction. welcome to the program the world is ringing in the new year as it sweeps across the globe every big city is to put on the biggest fireworks display australians were among the first celebrates the new year with their annual spectacular sydney harbor and a rain. over the years which marked the legalization of same sex marriage and

australia but not to be outdone hong kong's display was shooting stars flying off the skyscrapers and more than a kilometer of waterfront it for tory harbor even north korea. with a display in the capitol hill and don. just fireworks this time the styles will be following the new year as it crosses the globe here on d w. yeah and here in the german capital berlin preparations are already underway they host a massive new year's celebration at the iconic brandenburg gate each year and this year rebecca ritter is representing d.w. in the middle of the action. we've got hundreds of thousands of people expected there tonight what is on the agenda down at the gate. that's right they're

expecting anywhere up to a million people to be here out the front of the brandenburg gate here tonight as you can hear you that show is just dotted so it's pretty good timing it's very loud here we're taking lots of live acts lots of live performance and there's a d.j. set that's going to ring in the new year and of course they want to show which everyone's really looking forward to it wouldn't be berlin without a deal. we're hearing a lot about reports of this women's only zone which is being you know brought into the festivities as a precaution can you tell us a bit more about that. yeah absolutely it's it's actually beatific misrule misrepresented in the german and international media to the red cross have five stations set up here tonight for anyone not just women obviously given some viewers will remember in two thousand and fifteen in cologne there were a number of sexual assault cases and people it really shocked many people in

germany. just one expecting it now safety is obviously an extra issue for women but everyone's placed emphasis on the fact that it's not at those places and not only for women and there are certainly no women's only area for women to celebrate . so it's not you mr represent but what about the general security situation i mean things have happened in past years it provides for example with the christmas market. yeah absolutely well obviously there are a lot of bowl odds around the main areas around the gates there's five hundred security personnel on the side and there are some fifteen hundred police officers in the vicinity keeping everybody safe a lot of checks as you come in everyone going through your bags obviously you know liquids know all that sort of stuff like security at an airport but really the mood here is very festive and i don't i think people feel very safe here tonight all

right rebecca ritter's i hope you have a good time at the brandenburg gate thank you very much for joining us thank you happy new year. so germans must come together and twenty eight hundred that is the message from chancellor angela merkel in her annual new year's address to be broadcast later this evening w. has a preview where america highlights the challenges ahead she's struggling to form a government after september's election failed to produce a clear winner it was a difficult political year for chancellor angela merkel at the very beginning of her speech she addressed the social atmosphere in germany and the tensions or thought i think i know for many conversations and encounters this year that a lot of you are concerned about the completion of gemini it's been a long time since the differences of opinion about this have been so stark some have even spoken of a rift running through our society. america mention the worries over whether the

government would be able to organize and direct immigration into germany but she also spoke of the fears and doubts of people living in the countryside who feel left behind those are all the occasions as for foreign policy she look to europe and says she is expecting decisive years ahead for the european union. in france in all of this germany's future is inseparable from the future of europe the twenty seven countries of europe must be motivated most strongly than ever to hold together as a community and this will be the crucial issue of the coming years this will be a matter of whether we europeans represent our values in a globalized and digital world assertively and in a spirit of solidarity both internally and externally that. but european policymakers are also waiting for germany to form a new federal government for chancellor marigot that will be the most pressing task in the coming months. all in all

a bit to chew on for medical we have political correspondent michele in the coast are here with us to talk it over mentioned this rift in society in those remarks i mean is this her failure in that she's led germany for the last twelve years well that's what her critics are saying that she failed to detect this that she failed to actually create the kind of conditions where this wouldn't be possible she carefully avoided the word nationalism she avoided the many rightwing extreme policy that for the first time into german parliament but she certainly now is feeling this pressure and she is calling this challenge by the name this rift in society in this very much is and has been her government style to date that she didn't have the kind of macaw approach of drawing this grand vision of where the country where europe's to go but rather works down the list of challenges and that's what she did in this address well when where does medical go from here then

i mean we mentioned that these coalition talks are dragging on and merkel herself as a political figure in germany has a different meaning than just a few years ago i mean is your future bright she going to see out another four year term well that's the big question right now is seat technically able to put together what really what is the only option realistically left in another grand coalition with the social democrats will the democrats go along with this we're expecting this talks to begin for real over the coming days that's the first thing that's going to happen here at the beginning of the year at the same time we saw him many times before talking about is this the beginning of the end of hunger that machall what she has pasta prime i think there is a recognition from all sides that this is if it's another time in office we'll be. likely lost the big question is would see. so another full time that's what she says she intends to do but there's many ifs and there's many questions and we didn't see any kind of questioning of her power in the past so there is

a different quality of power that she has right now but if you start talking about who else is there in europe who will see that kind of power i think that's a good fresh look at really how much power she still holds suddenly looking on at germany from the outside right thanks so much for joining us. and didn't we will broadcast on the americans full new year's speech in english in about an hour's time it will go out during our eight o'clock central european time broadcast go on to some other stories making news around the world at least seventeen people have been killed and fourteen wounded in a bomb attack on a funeral in eastern afghanistan there has not yet been a claim of responsibility but both the taliban and militants from the so-called islamic state have stepped up assaults in the region in recent months. a rights group says police in democratic republic of congo have shot dead two protesters in

the capital city. this after security forces interrupted a catholic mass and arrested altar boys who had protested against the country's president elections to replace him have been delayed there due next year. at least thirty six people have been killed in a bus crash in central kenya police say a bus and a truck collided on a dangerous stretch of highway close to town. more than one hundred people have died on that route just this month alone. footage has emerged from a hostage standoff at a post office in eastern ukraine that ended peacefully. the man seen here had claimed to have firearms and explosives but he's arrested him and all nine hostages were released unharmed authorities say the suspect had a history of drug related offenses.

well iran's president hassan rouhani says people are free to protest and to criticize his government he was making his first statement since anti-government protests spread across the country in recent days authorities have restricted access to social media apps blamed in part for fanning turn out to protesters have been killed in the western city of dog food tens of thousands of iranians protested for a third consecutive day on saturday what started as an outcry against economic hardship quickly turned into demonstrations state officials have warned that. disorder pay the price. the protests are the largest since. in two thousand and nine. well for more we are joined by a.f.p. correspondent eric randolph in teheran eric we've now seen three days of protests last night two protesters were killed what's the situation presently do you expect

the protests to continue. it was being kind of hard to get information. quite a lot of internet access and social media ups but we have got reports that there are some relatively small protests. and videos on social media shows and purchase i was going to so we could be in for a fall right on the rest around the country president how son rouhani who has been notably absent throughout this period is due to give an address the nation at a time clock. and only interesting to see what he says to calm down tensions which . seem to be running slightly out of control. as he said these protests began on economic issues on the cost of living issues are. quite virulent and slogans and some fun to listen and some violence and different parts

yet there's some notion that the hard line elements in this regime were happy to see these protests happen at first in that they would discredit rouhani do you expect him to to close ranks with with the other side of things in the government tonight. well that is something that a few analysts have said the hard line is how economy is. to run it for a long time and. there are some groups that they hope to start the initial protests that were somewhat shocked by how quickly those escalated it grew out. and we have seen already the more truth more moderate hardline factions tourin to go referring to the gun council revolutionaries some are but also have to make a distinction. there are legitimate economic grievances everybody agrees that.

wanting to make sure the is separate from people who are pushing for wider disorder . violence against the system itself that seems like a very fine line to walk especially when the rhetoric is saying that protesters will pay the price for their actions of what kind of response are you expecting in the coming days. so far they are to soften your approach. up in the western town with the two protesters were killed which made it a different story but they have tried to not really confront the protesters if it starts to go out are we might see the road guards who are. other which indeed eric randolph in tehran thanks so much for joining us. well. thank you for joining us here at news. we'll leave you with some images of these

spectacular fireworks from japan from south korea and australia as those countries rang twenty eighteen enjoy. the whole d w one. for inside global insights the.