Qatar has become the first Middle Eastern country to welcome Chinese pandas, Suhail and Soraya, by housing them in luxurious, air-conditioned enclosures, AFP reported.

Crowds of children and reporters watched as the four-year-old male and three-year-old female took their first steps in a temporary enclosure at a ceremony in Al Khor Park about 50 kilometers north of Doha.

The Chinese government sent the animals as a gift on the occasion of the World Cup, which begins Nov. 20. China has not qualified for the event, but is a major consumer of Qatar's natural gas.

Authorities have not yet said whether the new home for the pandas, one of the largest enclosures in the world, will be ready in time for the World Cup.

Suhail and Soraya will have separate quarters in the Panda House.