DAMMAM — Essam Abdullatif Al-Mulla, acting mayor of the Eastern Province, said that the compensation for expropriation of nearly 500 homes in Al-Mosouwarah neighborhood in Awamiyah of Qatif in the Eastern Province reached more than SR800 million.



Addressing a press conference on Wednesday, Al-Mulla said that the project to develop the neighborhood would begin after completion of demolition of all the 488 houses.



“So far more than 80 houses have been demolished in this undeveloped neighborhood and the demolition works would continue until the area is cleared for a total facelift. The giant project to develop the neighborhood would be completed within two years,” he said.



Al-Mulla said that Al-Mosouwarah neighborhood is home to about 8,000 families. “All of them will be evacuated prior to the commencement of the demolition work, and the residents would be given sufficient time to evacuate after the completion of the evaluation process of their properties,” he added.



The authorities have embarked on a vigorous plan to develop Al-Mosouwarah neighborhood, which was hitherto a haven of terrorists and criminal gangs. The development project to revamp the neighborhood has come under repeated terrorist attacks in an effort to stop further construction.



In May, a two-year-old Saudi infant and a Pakistani expatriate were killed and 14 others, including four security persons, injured after terrorists shot at workers and passersby at a development project site in Al-Mosouwarah.



It is one of the oldest neighborhoods in Qatif, with some of its buildings more than 100 years old. The area contains unplanned buildings, and the development project entails the demolition of 488 residential units, and construction of shopping centers, restaurants, residential towers and a cultural center.