Twin panda cubs made their first public appearance Wednesday before devoted fans in Tokyo, but they will be on display only briefly for now — over three days — due to a spike in COVID-19 cases driven by the omicron variant.

The twins, male cub Xiao Xiao and its sister Lei Lei, which were born at Tokyo's Ueno Zoo in June, took their first steps as beaming fans held up their smartphones to film the cuddly pair as they played together.

Iran is now home to only a dozen Asiatic cheetahs, the deputy environment minister has said, describing the situation for the endangered species as "extremely critical".

"The measures we have taken to increase protection, reproduction, and the installation of road signs have not been enough to save this species," Hassan Akbari told Tasnim the news agency.

The tragic collapse of a cliff that left 10 dead in Brazil on Saturday was caused by torrential rains and more disasters could be on the way, meteorologist Estael Sias told AFP.

Two months of downpours have caused deadly flooding in several Brazilian states, including Bahia in the northeast and Minas Gerais in the southeast, where a huge column of rock crashed down on tourists boats on Furnas Lake.

China's automobiles sales grew for the first time since 2018 last year, a trade association said on Tuesday, as demand for new energy vehicles continues to rise.

Cybersecurity and space are emerging risks to the global economy, adding to existing challenges posed by climate change and the coronavirus pandemic, the World Economic Forum said in a report Tuesday.

The Global Risks Report is usually released ahead of the annual elite winter gathering of CEOs and world leaders in the Swiss ski resort of Davos, but the event has been postponed for a second year in a row because of COVID-19. The World Economic Forum still plans some virtual sessions next week.

Germany's new climate minister said Tuesday that the country faces a "gigantic" task if it wants to achieve its goals for reducing greenhouse gas emissions while ensuring sufficient energy for its energy-hungry industry.

Robert Habeck, a member of the environmentalist Greens, told reporters in Berlin that Germany is on track to halve its emissions by 2030 compared to 1990 levels — far off the government's target of 65%.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte's fourth coalition government took office on Monday a record 10 months after elections, with pledges to spend big on climate change and coronavirus.

The new government, formed after grueling negotiations, has earmarked a frugality-busting 35 billion euros ($40 billion) over the next 10 years for climate measures.

An indigenous Malaysian villager has been killed in a tiger attack, with government rangers shooting dead the critically endangered creature after it also charged them, authorities said. 

The 59-year-old victim, Anek Along, was attacked Friday near the town of Gua Musang in the northern Malaysian state of Kelantan. 

Air France-KLM said Monday it would add a surcharge of up to 12 euros ($13,50) on its tickets to try to offset the cost of using more expensive sustainable aviation fuel.

Air France said that the fuel levy would be added to tickets from January 10.

Damage wrought by Hurricane Ida in the U.S. state of Louisiana and the flash floods that hit Europe last summer helped make 2021 one of the most expensive years for natural disasters, reinsurance company Munich Re said Monday.

The company's annual report put the overall economic losses from natural disasters worldwide last year at $280 billion, making it the fourth-costliest after 2011, the year a massive earthquake and tsunami struck Japan.