Space and Memory in Post-war Aleppo

MA A+U student Meisoon Jumah has recently completed her thesis project 'Space and Memory in Post-war Aleppo' which develops a strategy for the eventual reconstruction of the city when the current war in Syria ends. Meisoon writes

'War and the city have shaped each other throughout urban and military history; in this project I will look at the effects of the war in Aleppo on the area South of Aleppo’s Citadel and propose a rebuilding idea by looking back at the memory of that space throughout many different ages. Aleppo has suffered a lot of difficult times and was the subject of many historic and natural disasters, yet it was able to recover and flourish every time. Such an ancient city should be able to raise again once the conflict is over. Finding an immediate strategy like the remote mapping of the destruction and the safeguarding of heritage by the many organisations involved as well as an early planning of a postwar strategy will help make a great difference for Aleppo. In this project I tried to propose an idea for change in a small part of the Old City, an idea that is not enough to rebuild Aleppo but at least is one step closer towards a very long rebuilding process.
My design proposal for the area South of the Citadel will include a proposal for each of the seven main buildings on the site as well as the redesign of the public areas between them.'