Only a few minutes into the UAE's 49th National Day and proud parents Basma and Ahmed Khalifa were given an extra special moment of joy with the arrival of baby Jannat.
She was born at Bareen International Hospital at 12.10am, making her one of the first newborns to arrive on December 2.
The Egyptian couple welcomed their second child after surgeons performed a Caesarean section on Mrs Khalifa, who will recover in hospital before returning to the family home to Abu Dhabi.
“Today is an unforgettable moment for our family,” said Mr Khalifa, while holding his new daughter who weighed a healthy 2.39 kilograms.
“We are extremely happy that baby Jannat shares her birthday with the National Day of our great nation. It is a double celebration for us from this year onwards.”
Doctors said it was a straightforward birth, with more babies due later in the day.
“It is always an honour to bring a child into this world but it is even more significant to bring the first baby of the 49th UAE National Day,” said Dr Hala Ali Hassan, who cared for Mrs Khalifa during her delivery.
National Day will also be even more significant in the lives of Ahmed Alkhajeh and Afra Saeed.
The Emirati couple welcomed their first child into the world a little after midnight at Burjeel Hospital in Abu Dhabi.
Little Khalifa Ahmed Alkhajeh weighed 2.7kg.
“We have been longing for this since Afra became pregnant,” said Mr Alkhajeh.
“This is our first child and hence the entire family has been waiting for this day.
“It is a blessing that the child has been born when the nation as a whole is celebrating.”
A few hours later and Medcare Women and Children Hospital in Dubai recorded its first National Day births.
Abdulrahman Al Blooki was born at 3.53am and was the third child of Emiratis Muna Hussein and Yousif Al Blooki.
Meanwhile, doctors at Prime Hospital in Dubai had to wait a little longer for the first child to be born on the 49th National Day. Ayah was born to her Lebanese mother Rabha Kanjo and father Mubarak Masoud at 7.28am.
At NMC Al Zahra Hospital in Sharjah, Emirati police officer Ahmed Sultan became a proud father to a baby girl only a few minutes after midnight.
His wife Sheikha Hamda said she was delighted and relieved to give birth to a healthy child during the pandemic.
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“The celebrations will have to be toned down, with no visits from the relatives due to Covid, but our families and friends are co-operating and respecting the safety guidelines," she said.
NMC said it was planning to welcome more than a dozen National Day babies across its network of hospitals.
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“It is a dream of every Emirati to bring their children into this wonderful world on the National Day and I am very happy that my wife has delivered today,” said Mr Sultan.
Elsewhere at NMC Speciality Hospital in Al Ain, a Moroccan family delivered their second child, a girl, at 9:26am.
The happy father Idris Ben Ramadan is a horse trainer at a Dubai equestrian club and the mother, Rachida Nouri, is a homemaker.
“The entire length of the pregnancy period was not easy for us as I was working in Dubai and had to do multiple Covid-19 tests to visit my wife in Al Ain,” said Mr Ramadan.
“I will remember this as a sweet memory all of my life. We wish and thank the Rulers of the nation on the occasion of the National day for building a wonderful and safe country to live in.”
At Danat Al Emarat Hospital for Women and Children in Abu Dhabi, 12 babies arrived on National Day.
The first, baby Zayed Saeed Al Shehhi arrived at 12.13am.
