In Pictures: Persian New Year

Tens of millions of people from Central Asia to the Middle East have been celebrating the ancient festival of Nowruz, the Persian New Year.

The festival - which has Zoroastrian and Islamic origins - has found a special resonance in Afghanistan, where in recent years it was banned by the now ousted Taleban rulers.

But this year it was forbidden in some Turkish cities, amid fears of unrest from Kurdish separatist groups.

Afghans used the occasion to mock the Taleban

They celebrated with music, also banned by the former rulers

Afghan men raised the Jonda pole, symbol of life's renewal

...but in Istanbul police used truncheons on demonstrators

Festivities were more grandiose in the Turkmen capital, Ashgabat...

... and in Uzbekistan they were decidedly colourful...

...with acrobatic feats thrown in.

The festival gave some regional leaders a chance to play to the cameras