A pair of giant panda twins have been caught on camera engaging in a sibling showdown, ranging from adorable snuggles to energetic play-fighting as they battle it out to be top bear at the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda (CCRCGP) base in southwest China's Sichuan Province.
Video footage recently posted on the 'iPanda' multimedia platform shows one of the fluffy pandas clinging tightly onto its twin, interrupting its sibling while it was busy concentrating on eating bamboo.
In another clip, the dueling duo were seen frolicking away atop a tall wooden structure, attempting to scratch and bite each other around a tree trunk.
The male panda An Bao and his twin sister Zhong Zhong were born in August 2022 at the CCRCGP Wolong Shenshuping Base, and are now living in Dujiangyan Base. Their mother Zhang Ka is a wild panda who was found at Mount Zhangga in the Fengtongzhai National Nature Reserve in Sichuan. She is a legendary panda whose two captive-born cubs were later successfully reintroduced into the wild.
The CCRCGP is a world-leading institution for the breeding and conservation of one of China's national treasures. The center has also established a global platform for promoting international cooperation and exchanges involving 18 zoos from 16 countries and regions, as well as 39 domestic animal breeding institutions and more than 10 scientific research institutes.
Cute panda twins engage in playful sibling showdown
The Palestinian death toll from the ongoing Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip has risen to 35,647, health authorities in the Palestinian enclave said in a press statement on Tuesday.
Over the past 24 hours, the Israeli army killed 85 Palestinians and wounded 200 others, bringing the total death toll to 35,647 and injuries to 79,852 since the latest round of Palestinian-Israeli conflict broke out on October 7, 2023.
The health authorities also said that many casualties remain buried under the rubble, making it difficult for medical emergency and civil defense personnel to carry out rescue operations.
The Israeli army said in a statement that drones and fighter aircraft bombed nearly 70 "terrorist targets" in the Gaza Strip over the past 24 hours, including military buildings, weapons depots, warehouses, rocket launchers, surveillance units, and other military infrastructure.
Israeli forces killed a number of militants in the Jabalia area of the northern Gaza Strip, including a "terrorist group" that was shooting at soldiers, read the statement.
It added that Israeli forces were continuing their operations in the southernmost Gazan city of Rafah, where a drone killed a "terrorist" who was firing mortar shells at Israeli soldiers.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced on Tuesday that the Israeli military and Military Intelligence Directorate launched a joint military operation in the West Bank city of Jenin earlier Tuesday.
According to information from Israeli intelligence agencies, Palestinian armed personnel were active in the area. During the operation, the Israeli military engaged in firefights with the Palestinian armed personnel and destroyed a significant amount of infrastructure.
The Palestinian health ministry issued a statement on Tuesday, saying that on that day, the Israeli military killed seven Palestinians and injured 12 others in Jenin and the nearby refugee camp. Two of the injured are in serious condition.
Palestinian death toll in Gaza rises to 35,647: health authorities
