In the last decades, civil wars and armed conflicts in the Balkans and many countries of the MENA region, have heavily affected the historic “traditional” cities, whose reconstruction represent a dramatic and controversial challenge. More than the physical damages, the disruption of the social fabric represents the main issue to be addressed. Ethnic and religious conflicts have displaced large part of the residents and destroyed the family and community ties that shaped the urban fabric and the local economy. The post-emergency phase has proved to be very delicate because of various legal aspects and the risk of losing structures that could be eventually recovered, but the main issue is indeed the definition of the targets and priorities for the reconstruction of the social and physical urban fabric, which are not always obvious.