Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, has revealed a study into levelling the summit of Al Awain mountain in Khor Fakkan and building a residential area on top of it, as part of a broader administrative reorganisation of the city.
The announcement came during a telephone interview on the Direct Line programme on 11 August 2026. The Ruler also confirmed that a new administrative division plan for Khor Fakkan is complete and will be published shortly, according to the Ruler of Sharjah’s official media centre.
Al Awain mountain and the Khor Fakkan residential plan
Sheikh Sultan described Al Awain as the largest mountain in the area, running from Victoria School to Al Ghazir. The study under way examines flattening the peak and developing housing on the levelled summit.
‘Since the largest mountain in this area is Jabal Al Awain, which dominates all areas, we are now studying leveling the top of this mountain and building a residential area on top of it, because it will provide it with a large area that can accommodate a large number of people,’ he said.
No timeline or cost estimate for the mountain project has been published. The Ruler described it as a study, not a confirmed scheme.
How Khor Fakkan’s neighbourhoods are being reorganised
Sheikh Sultan said Khor Fakkan is a city enclosed by mountains on all sides, stretching from Al Hawami in the north to Al Aqaba at the entrance to Al Lu’lu’iyah in the south. He stressed that the surrounding neighbourhoods are integral parts of the city, not suburbs of it.
One suburb he addressed is Al Subaihiyah, named after a historic site in the area. The Ruler said it had been partly absorbed by Al Lu’lu’iyah and Al Zubarah, and that the new plan consolidates Al Nakheel, Al Lu’lu’iyah, Al Zubarah and Hasi under the Al Subaihiyah suburb.
On the opposite side sits the Al Harai suburb. Sheikh Sultan noted that the name refers to snakes and said he was reluctant to retain place names with negative connotations, stressing his preference for names that carry positive meaning.
The Ruler also explained the origin of the Al Ashqar neighbourhood name. ‘Al Ashqar is a mountain, and the meaning of the word in Arabic does not refer to the colour; rather, it is the name of a type of mountain, and these are mountains whose clay is characterised by a light brown colour,’ he said.
He drew a parallel with the planning of Kalba: ‘Just as we planned the city of Kalba, we also planned the city of Khor Fakkan, but the plan has not been published yet.’
The administrative plan was developed to reflect Khor Fakkan’s geographical characteristics and the identity of its neighbourhoods, The Gulf Observer reported.
Once the new administrative division is formally announced, residents will have clarity on which suburb their address falls under. The publication of that plan is the next concrete step the Ruler indicated is imminent.
