PILPG Journal of Frontline Scholarship
PILPG Journal of Frontline Scholarship is guided by the belief that meaningful progress in peace and justice is driven by collaboration across generations, disciplines, and experiences. The mission of the publication is to elevate practitioner-informed, academically grounded, and forward-looking analysis that can shape real-world outcomes in conflict resolution, accountability, and international law. We aim to bridge the gap between theory and practice, while mentoring the next generation of peacebuilders and legal experts through intentional co-authorship. By centering voices from the field and providing space for emerging professionals, the publication promotes a more inclusive and dynamic vision of global legal scholarship. Upholding high standards of intellectual contribution through peer review and editorial oversight, PILPG Journal of Frontline Scholarship is committed to producing work that is both rigorous and relevant. As part of our mission to democratize knowledge, all publications are freely accessible and can be found on this page.
Submissions are by invitation only. We do not accept unsolicited articles.
Reclaiming Syria: Law, Land, and the Politics of Restitution after Conflict
This article analyzes property restitution in post-conflict Syria and traces patterns of dispossession to six decades of state-directed manipulation of land law by the Assad governments. Agrarian reforms, demographic engineering, urban redevelopment, and counterterrorism legislation enabled the systematic use of property as a tool of political control and population displacement. Structural barriers including security sector control over transactions, destruction of records, and legal fragmentation limit the viability of conventional restitution models. Drawing on international standards and comparative experience from Bosnia, Kosovo, Iraq, Cyprus, and Burundi, the article proposes an independent hybrid Restitution Commission grounded in flexible evidentiary rules and mass claims procedures.
