According to The National, several towers are scheduled to open on or near the Corniche in Abu Dhabi in the next few months, offering more than 1,400 apartments with rooftop pools, health clubs and all the modern amenities. For the first time, the capital will have the type of high-end apartment towers common in Dubai. "I see a lot of people moving back from Dubai because we have the quality now," says Almer Agmyren, the managing director of Rex Real Estate. The list of nearly completed projects includes Etihad Towers, the collection of five blocks near the Emirates Palace hotel. There is also the 47-storey Seba Tower, now known as Al Ain Tower and commonly known as the "wobbly building", near Spinneys market, and Nation Towers, which is next to the Hilton Corniche. "Anything on the Corniche is literally like a jewel in the crown," says Steve Morgan, the head of the UAE office for the property consultancy Cluttons. "They are filling a niche in the marketplace for people who can afford it." Prospective tenants have been told the first of the 885 apartments in Etihad Towers will be available on October 15. Annual rents in the Etihad Towers apartments range from a low of US$ 27 thousand for a 67-square meter one bedroom to US$ 265 thousand for a 732-square meter penthouse. A two-bedroom, 160 square meter apartment is listed at about US$ 61.3 thousand. Al Ain Tower, which is expected to offer similar pricing, is also scheduled to open by the end of October, agents have been told. Nation Towers is likely to open in the spring.

The amount of construction projects cancelled and delayed in the United Arab Emirates rose to $170bn in August, Citigroup said in a report, signaling the battered sector in the Gulf state is still away from a recovery, reported Arabianbusiness. UAE accounts for 56 percent of the total cancelled and delayed projects for the main regional markets, the MENA construction projects tracker report by Citi showed. The cancellations are an increase of 13 percent since July. "Unsurprisingly cancellations in the UAE relate predominantly to real estate," the report said. UAE's property boom ended in 2008, with home prices in the Dubai emirate plunging by about 60 percent, forcing many developers to abandon projects. Meanwhile, projects cancelled and on hold across main MENA markets dropped slightly to $1.69 trillion in August from $1.7 trillion in July. In other markets, Saudi Arabia added $81bn of preliminary projects to its pipeline since July, said the report, highlighting the growth potential in the market. Kuwait and Qatar also have projects worth $20bn and $2bn respectively that are in preliminary stages of construction. In contrast, UAE showed a $12bn decline in preliminary projects to $118bn.

On September 9 Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, will launch the official operation of the Dubai Metro Green Line, which spans 23 kilometers and comprises 16 stations, reported Gulf News. The Red and Green lines of Dubai Metro will intersect twice; first time at the Union Station; which is the biggest underground metro station in the world spanning an area of 25 thousand square meters, and second time at Khalid bin Al Waleed Station; which is one of the most dazzling metro stations across the globe. Metro riders can transfer between the two lines through these two stations. According to the article, 14 trains will be operated during peak hours and 10 trains during off-peak hours with a service frequency (headway) ranging from 6 to 8 minutes. Accordingly, the number of trains operated on both the Red and Green lines will shoot to 50 trains during peak times and 28 trains during off-peak times. As reported by 2daydubai.com, work officially commenced on the construction on metro on March 21, 2006, groundwork's began in February, 2006. The first phase (US$ 4.2 billion) covers 35 kilometers of the proposed network, and the second phase (US$ 12 billion) includes extensions to the initial routes on both lines. The red line of Dubai metro opened to public on September 9, 2009.

Ski slope, started construction of its mixed-use Khams Shamat Touristic Development project in Syria even as the security situation there worsened. The Dubai-based developer began work on the US $1 billion development, which is located 17 kilometers west of the Syrian capital Damascus, the company said in an e-mailed statement on August 7. The mall builder on July 27 started laying the foundations for the first phase of the project, which will involve building hotels, shops, homes and offices within a 1.5 million square- meter area in the Yaafour district, according to the statement. "All necessary preparations required to proceed with the execution of the project have already been made," Waddah As reported by Bloomberg, Majid Al Futtaim Group, the shopping-mall developer that built Dubai's indoor El Solh, the company's regional head for Syria and Lebanon, said in the statement. That includes the allocation of project management and construction teams, he said. About 2,200 protesters have been killed in Syria since March in an uprising against the government of President Bashar al-Assad, according to the National Organization for Human Rights. More than 500 members of the security forces have also been killed, Deputy Foreign Minister Fayssal Mekdad told India's News X channel.

Damac Properties, a leading real estate developer, has commenced main construction works at its US$ 138.3 million residential development at Dubai Marina. Leading construction company Arabtec, which was awarded the main construction contract, is now on site following the completion of enabling works by Zetas Foundation Technology. The 420 meters tall, 85-storey Damac Heights will comprise one, two and three bedroom apartments, as well as duplexes and penthouses, and have views of the Palm Jumeirah. The complex will incorporate five star amenities including a temperature controlled swimming pool, gymnasium, nursery, sauna, steam room and spa facilities, a statement said. "Damac Heights will be another shining jewel along the beachfront real estate band on Al Sufouh Road, Dubai Marina. This two kilometre stretch of land is home to some of the most exclusive and luxurious residential properties ever constructed, and of these real estate gems, Damac Heights will shine the brightest" said Niall Mc Loughlin, senior vice president, Damac Properties. "To impress in Dubai these days, developers are aware they need to go to the next level. It's not enough to build a nice apartment building in a mediocre location. You have to build a phenomenal building, in a prestigious location with every conceivable modern convenience included. That's what we are aiming to achieve with Damac Heights," Mc Loughlin added. Damac Heights will represent the second partnership between Arabtec and Damac Properties at Dubai Marina. It follows the completion of the award winning 84-storey residential tower 'Ocean Heights' last year. Damac Properties was established in 2002 and has already completed 28 buildings to date with 6045 units and spanning 986 580.9 square meters with projects in Dubai. Before the end of this year Damac Properties will complete a further 8 buildings comprising 1,329 units spanning 233 466.0 square meters.