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New Year's Eve Sweeps Across the Globe, but Wars Cast Shadow on 2024
Voice of America
People watch confetti flying around after the clock strikes midnight during New Year celebrations at Times Square, in New York City, Jan. 1, 2024. NYPD officers check people ahead of the New Year's Eve in Times Square celebration, Dec. 31, 2023, in New York. A light show is projected on the Arc de Triomphe during New Year celebrations on the Champs Elysees in Paris, France, Jan. 1, 2024. People watch the last sunset of the year from a beach on New Year's eve in Mumbai, India, Dec. 31, 2023.
New Year’s Day arrived to cheers from thousands in New York’s Times Square where a sparkling crystal ball descended to start 2024 with hope for some, even as the world’s ongoing conflicts subdued celebrations and raised security concerns across the globe.
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FILE: An evening launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying 20 Starlink V2 Mini satellites, from Space Launch Complex at Vandenberg Space Force Base is seen over the Pacific Ocean from Encinitas, California, June 23, 2024. FILE - An antenna of the Starlink satellite-based broadband system donated by the U.S. tech billionaire Elon Musk is seen in Izyum, Kharkiv region, Sept. 25, 2022, amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
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In this photo provided by Reliance Industries, Anant Ambani, son of billionaire Mukesh Ambani, holds hands with Radhika Merchant during their wedding ceremony at Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai, India, July 12, 2024. Billionaire Mukesh Ambani, center, poses with son Anant and wife Nita at Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant's wedding at Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai, India, July 12, 2024.
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FILE - Dave Hoffman of West Virginia University's Water Research Institute holds up a vial of light rare earth oxides at a facility that separates them from acidic groundwater draining from an abandoned coal mine, June 25, 2024, in Mount Storm, W.Va. FILE - Dave Hoffman, left, and Paul Ziemkiewicz of West Virginia University's Water Research Institute check on clarifying pools at a facility they run where rare earth minerals are separated from acidic groundwater, June 25, 2024, in Mount Storm, W.Va. FILE - West Virginia University's Water Research Institute runs this facility where rare earth minerals are separated from acidic groundwater draining from an abandoned coal mine, June 25, 2024, in Mount Storm, W.Va.