Current conditions of cities and territories in the MENA region pose serious design questions in terms of possible future reconstruction strategies. The tabula rasa conditions offer many chances but the ownership structure represents a major obstacle towards a sustainable reconstruction. Urban borders in Syrian cities before, during and after the civil war are undergoing processes of urban metamorphosis dictated by economic, social and historical causes. The comprehension of the complex concurrent factors that shaped current conditions is a starting point for the development of future strategies capable of acting as an alternative to current reconstruction laws that tend to intensify rather than diminish conflict.

Current conditions of cities and territories in the MENA region pose serious design questions in terms of possible future reconstruction strategies. The tabula rasa conditions offer many chances but the ownership structure represents a major obstacle towards a sustainable reconstruction. Urban borders in Syrian cities before, during and after the civil war are undergoing processes of urban metamorphosis dictated by economic, social and historical causes. The comprehension of the complex concurrent factors that shaped current conditions is a starting point for the development of future strategies capable of acting as an alternative to current reconstruction laws that tend to intensify rather than diminish conflict.