Chinese giant pandas meet public in Doha's first Panda House ahead of World Cup

Giant panda Jing Jing is seen at the Panda House at Al Khor Park in Doha, Qatar on Nov. 17, 2022. The two giant pandas, three-year-old female Si Hai and four-year-old male Jing Jing, made their first public appearance on Thursday ahead of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. 

Photo by Xiao Yijiu, Xinhua

Doha's first ever Panda House officially opened to the public ahead of the 2022 Qatar World Cup.

With the 2022 Qatar World Cup just three days away, Doha's first ever Panda House officially opened to the public on Thursday.

Located at Al Khor Park near the Al Bayt Stadium, the Panda House will be home to Chinese giant pandas, three-year-old female Si Hai and four-year-old male Jing Jing.

As the first giant pandas in the Middle East region, the couple was given two Arab names, Suhail for Jing Jing and Soraya for Si Hai, meaning stars in the sky.

Born in the Wolong Shenshuping panda base under the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda in southwest China's Sichuan Province, Si Hai and Jing Jing arrived in Qatar on October 19 and went through a 21-day quarantine before meeting the public in their respective and fully air-conditioned areas.

Giant panda Si Hai is seen at the Panda House at Al Khor Park in Doha, Qatar on Nov. 17, 2022. 

Photo by Pan Yulong, Xinhua

Chinese Ambassador to Qatar Zhou Jian attended the ceremony and emphasized that the arrival of the giant pandas is a milestone of the China and Qatar relationship.

"It not only carries the best wishes of 1.4 billion Chinese people to the Qatar World Cup, but also demonstrates the full support of China for Qatar to host the game," Zhou added.

"The giant pandas will surely deepen the friendship between the two countries and expand cooperation in various fields, becoming a new symbol of China-Qatar relations."

Giant panda Si Hai is seen at the Panda House at Al Khor Park in Doha, Qatar on Nov. 17, 2022. 

Photo by Pan Yulong, Xinhua

Zhou also noted that the giant pandas have received meticulous and thoughtful care since they moved in, adding that they can understand certain Sichuan dialect for the moment.

"The experts here are working very hard to take care of the giant pandas and trying to learn the dialect to better communicate with the pandas," he said. "I must say they are doing a really great job."