In Pictures: Celebrating Songkran

People in Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Burma are celebrating the Buddhist New Year, by taking part in massive outdoor water fights, said to wash away the sins of the previous year.

People of all ages are taking to the streets to shower their friends and relatives, or passing strangers, with water.

The New Year festival, named Songkran in Thailand, is a traditional religious festival, but has also become a popular secular event in recent years.

In Luang Prabang, Laos, these women used the festival to make offerings of food and alms to Buddhist monks...

...but elsewhere in the city, no one was safe from the buckets of water.

In Burma, where the festival is known as Thingyan, people are taking advantage of temporarily relaxed laws against gatherings of more than five people.

In Thailand, people from all parts of Thai society are taking part, including these members of Bangkok's Sikh community.

Thailand's tourism authority says the increase in tourist numbers during this year's event could bring millions of dollars into the economy.

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