Aleppo and Mosul—Reconstruction with Legal and Urban Development Tools

AleppoAleppo and MosulMosul were destroyed by armed conflicts and are going to be rebuilt. Similarities as well as differences between the two historically significant places are shown. The cities, united in the Hamdanid Empire at the end of the Abbasid period, were jointly administered under OttomanOttoman occupation. Both located on important trade routes suffered economic losses with the opening of the Suez Canal. In the 1920s, SyriaSyria and Iraq became under French and British mandate, respectively, which led to the formation of two states, regardless of the ethnic and religious groups. Both cities were occupied by the IS from 2014 to 2016. The unnatural separation continues, with Iraq receiving international support, while Syria is largely left to rebuild on its own due to the international embargo. In this contribution, we conceptualise the legal and land managementLand management strategies and instruments for tackling the complex challenges of preserving cultural heritageHeritage, building materials, techniques, and housing in the reconstructionReconstruction of Aleppo, Mosul, and other war-torn cities.