Emir of Qatar Creating Emirate in the Ionian Sea

The Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, after the purchase of the Greek island Oxia in the Ionian Sea, Greece, is planning to buy seven more islands located in the Echinades group, Ionian Sea. As reported, the family of the Emir of Qatar, has already bought half the island of Petalas and will soon proceed in purchasing the whole area. The acquisition of Petalas is considered very important as it is the biggest island in the Echinades group. Al-Thani bought the island of Oxia for 5.6 million euros from the Greek-Australian family Stamoulis. The investment, is expected to be around 250-300 million euros. Oxia covers a surface area of about 500 hectares which is half the size of the Italian island Capri and is 38 km away from the island of Ithaca. Al-Thani plans to transform the island into a luxury resort which will include a five-star hotel, a boutique hotel, two tourist resorts, a series of bungalows on the beach, bars, restaurants, a shopping area, sports facilities and a heliport. Part of the island is under the protection of the environmental organization “Natura 2000,” but the rest can be used for commercial purposes. However, The “transformation” project is moving at snail’s pace due to bureaucracy.

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