IRNA - Former United Nations Resident Coordinator in Iran Gary Lewis in a message expressed congratulations on the occasion of the upcomimg Iranian new year (will start March 21, 2018).


'To all our friends in Iran � and all over the world � who celebrate Nowruz as you prepare to gather around the haft seen table with your loved ones, Elizabeth Lewis [his wife] and I would like to extend heartfelt wishes for a very happy and peaceful New Year,' Lewis said in a Twitter message released on Saturday.

Nowruz is the name of the Iranian New Year, also known as the Persian New Year, which is celebrated worldwide by the Iranians, along with some other ethno-linguistic groups, as the beginning of the New Year.

Millions of people in Iran and a number of other countries across the globe celebrate Nowruz, including in Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, India, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.

It is celebrated by more than 300 million people worldwide on the day of the spring Equinox, which marks the sun�s crossing of the Equator and the start of spring in the Northern Hemisphere.