A one-bedroom unit at the new Fahid Island development in Abu Dhabi is priced from Dh3.5 million ($953,029), according to developer Aldar Properties, amid soaring property demand.
The massive project, which has a gross development value of Dh40 billion, will be built in phases. The first residential development – Fahid Beach Residences, with seven buildings – is expected to be complete by 2029.
Spread across 2.7 million square metres, with an 11km coastline, Fahid Island will be built between Yas Island and Saadiyat Island. It will have amenities including running tracks and cycling routes, with 30 per cent of the area dedicated to natural spaces.
Fahid Island is “little bit more than just residential", Jonathan Emery, chief executive of Aldar Development, said during the launch of the project.
“This is sort of a destinational street. The beach is designed to draw, not just residents, but other people to come and enjoy that amenity. The quality of the school, which will shortly be announced, will also say this is not a normal residential [project] and there's something special going on here.”
The island’s waterfront promenade will have a mix of retail, dining and art experiences. Coral Drive, the island’s boutique retail boulevard, will have outlets, concept stores, art galleries, a ballet school, cafes and public artworks. Kite surfing, paddle boarding, illuminated night swimming, and volleyball will also available to residents of the island.
“We would expect international interest in this location. I think it's got many ingredients that people would look to as a place they'd want to live. It’s incredibly attractive to people from all over the world,” Mr Emery said.
“We also have a lot of local customers who have been with us loyally from the start, and they know Abu Dhabi well, and they've been like, 'When is Fahid coming?' Now they've seen it, people are very excited.”
Residential property sale prices in Abu Dhabi rose by 11 per cent annually last year amid higher demand and a supply shortage, according to a March report by real estate company Cushman & Wakefield Core.
The Abu Dhabi Real Estate Centre reported that total transaction value in the emirate grew by 34.5 per cent to Dh25.3 billion across 6,896 deals in the first quarter of 2025, compared with Dh18.8 billion from 5,773 transactions in the same period of 2024.
Off-plan sales in April across the UAE capital were up 75 per cent month-on-month at Dh804 million, driven by an increase in activity on Saadiyat Island and Al Jubail Island, EFG Hermes said last week. Aldar Properties accounted for the largest off-plan market share, contributing 70 per cent of off-plan activity in April.
The announcement of a Disneyland Abu Dhabi theme park on Yas Island has further supported the property market. “Disney clearly had an enormous positive impact on the UAE and Abu Dhabi, primarily. It's just increased people's understanding of Abu Dhabi," Mr Emery said.
“There are many things that have put us on the map, but that is another thing that has really raised the profile. And anything that raises the profile supports Abu Dhabi, investment in Abu Dhabi. We've certainly seen an uptick in interest in investing, in moving here and investing in real estate since Disney.”
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Director: Saeed Roustaee
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Rating: 4/5
Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
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Rating: 5/5
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Defence review at a glance
• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”
• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems
• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.
• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%
• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade
• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
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3. Hajj
4. Shahada
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Who is Mohammed Al Halbousi?
The new speaker of Iraq’s parliament Mohammed Al Halbousi is the youngest person ever to serve in the role.
The 37-year-old was born in Al Garmah in Anbar and studied civil engineering in Baghdad before going into business. His development company Al Hadeed undertook reconstruction contracts rebuilding parts of Fallujah’s infrastructure.
He entered parliament in 2014 and served as a member of the human rights and finance committees until 2017. In August last year he was appointed governor of Anbar, a role in which he has struggled to secure funding to provide services in the war-damaged province and to secure the withdrawal of Shia militias. He relinquished the post when he was sworn in as a member of parliament on September 3.
He is a member of the Al Hal Sunni-based political party and the Sunni-led Coalition of Iraqi Forces, which is Iraq’s largest Sunni alliance with 37 seats from the May 12 election.
He maintains good relations with former Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki’s State of Law Coaliton, Hadi Al Amiri’s Badr Organisation and Iranian officials.
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Company Profile
Founders: Tamara Hachem and Yazid Erman
Based: Dubai
Launched: September 2019
Sector: health technology
Stage: seed
Investors: Oman Technology Fund, angel investor and grants from Sharjah's Sheraa and Ma'an Abu Dhabi
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The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
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Premier League results
Saturday
Tottenham Hotspur 1 Arsenal 1
Bournemouth 0 Manchester City 1
Brighton & Hove Albion 1 Huddersfield Town 0
Burnley 1 Crystal Palace 3
Manchester United 3 Southampton 2
Wolverhampton Wanderers 2 Cardiff City 0
West Ham United 2 Newcastle United 0
Sunday
Watford 2 Leicester City 1
Fulham 1 Chelsea 2
Everton 0 Liverpool 0
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GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
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Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
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Lexus LX700h specs
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The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
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- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
