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A strategic urban framework for the reconstruction of war-damaged cities: A case study of Kabul City

Mohammad Sayed Farahza
Abstract

Urban reconstruction post-war was one of the most challenging problems of modern planning, in which physical loss, institutional collapse, and social exposures came together to thwart post-war recovery. Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, presented the ideal study of the issues caused by war that had weakened its city infrastructure and institutions. The purpose of study was to construct a strategic urban plan for Kabul encompassing resilience, sustainability, and citizen participation in post-war reconstruction. The findings showed deep spatial inequities in urban exposure to damage throughout Kabul. An analysis of destruction data indicated Dasht-e-Barchi district suffered most damage with 60% of buildings destroyed, while the greatest damage to the transport network, which included 18 important roads, was borne along the Jalalabad Road corridor. Composite Vulnerability Index modeling emphasised that just 18% of the city’s territory, defined as "Red zones", held 63% of Kabul’s key infrastructure and 68% of overall building loss and required urgent consideration. Stakeholder interviews also reflected systematic institutional deficits: 92% of the stakeholders name data shortages and institutional duplication as the key obstacles, and 76% name corruption as a persistent inhibition. The adoption of geospatial technologies (68%), participatory planning models (81%), and enhanced inter-agency collaboration (68%) were the major opportunities. Thematic interview coding reiterated governance fragmentation, ethnic cleavages, and short-sighted planning horizons as common challenges. The proposed conceptual framework was based on three pillars that were interdependent: passive defense (spatial planning and resilient networks), sustainable development (green, critical, and equitable infrastructure-based reconstruction), and local participation (accountability mechanisms and community-led planning). These observations proved rehabilitation of Kabul was contingent on spatially focused resource allocation, reform of institutions, and representative government. In practice, the study provided an application model for post-conflict urban rehabilitation in conflict-affected cities to inform resilient and efficient post-conflict urban rehabilit

Keywords

urban planning; post-war reconstruction; sustainable redevelopment; urban resilience; post-conflict urban recovery

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Received 05.08.2025, Revised 17.11.2025, Accepted 19.12.2025

Retrieved from Vol. 11, No. 4, 2025

Suggested citation

Farahza, M.S. (2025). A strategic urban framework for the reconstruction of war-damaged cities: A case study of Kabul City. Architectural Studies, 11(4), 43-52. https://doi.org/10.56318/as/4.2025.43

https://doi.org/10.56318/as/4.2025.43

Pages 43-52

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ISSN 2411-801X e-ISSN 2786-7374  UDC 71;72
DOI: 10.56318/as