Forensic Architecture

Cartographic regression refers to the process of using historic surveys, maps, and aerial photographs overlaid on contemporary imagery, in order to track changes in the territory and “determine how past landscape elements correspond to those in the modern world.” Cartographic regression is increasingly being used in archaeological surveys as a means to evaluate probable locations of cultural resources.

I.121  Airstrikes on Minab Primary School

Date of Incident
28 Feb 2026
Location
Shajareh Tayyebeh School, Minab, Iran
Forums
Media
Commissioned By
Full Story Films
Summary
At least 121 children were killed at their primary school in the city of Minab on the first day of the 2026 US-Israeli war against Iran. Following calls from bereaved families and working with Sky News, we reconstructed the circumstances surrounding the airstrikes that claimed their lives.

I.111  The Massacre at Tur Al-Zagh: Al-Dawayima, 29 October 1948

Date of Incident
29 Oct 1948
Location
Al-Dawayima, Palestine
Forums
Exhibition, Media
In Partnership With
Palestine Land Society
Summary
In collaboration with Palestine Land Society and working first-hand with Palestinian survivors of the 1948 Nakba, FA has uncovered new evidence related to a major massacre carried out by Israeli forces on 29 Oct 1948 in the village of al-Dawayima.

I.110  The Evros/Meriç River: A Century of Border Design

Date of Incident
1926 – 2025
Location
Evros/Meriç river, Greece/Turkey
Forums
Web Platform
In Partnership With
Self-Initiated
Summary
First drawn a century ago, the border that separates Greece from Turkey along the Evros/Meriç river at the EU’s southeastern frontier is deadlier and more opaque than ever. FA/Forensis built an interactive platform that unpacks this complex and lethal border infrastructure, and examines the present-day condition of the border against the transformation of the river landscape over the past century.

I.107  German Colonial Genocide in Namibia: Swakopmund

Date of Incident
1904 – 1908
Location
Swakopmund, Namibia
Forums
Exhibition, Media
In Partnership With
Nama Traditional Leaders Association (NTLA), Ovaherero Traditional Authority (OTA)
Summary
During their genocidal campaign against the indigenous Ovaherero and Nama, German colonial troops established concentration camps across today’s Namibia. The largest was in the port town of Swakopmund, a logistics hub built by forced labour. Working with local activists, we reconstructed the town as it was at that time, revealing the location of Swakopmund's concentration camp for the first time.

I.101  ‘No traces of life’: Israel’s Ecocide in Gaza 2023-2024

Date of Incident
07 Oct 2023 – Ongoing
Location
Gaza
Forums
Legal Process, Media
Commissioned By
Self-Initiated
Summary
Since October 2023, the Israeli military has systematically targeted agricultural land and infrastructure in Gaza. Marking the occasion of Land Day in Palestine, our investigation reveals that the widespread destruction of orchards and greenhouses in Gaza is a deliberate act of ecocide that supports Israel’s genocidal campaign.

I.94  Executions and Mass Graves in Tantura, 23 May 1948

Date of Incident
22 May 1948
Location
Tantura, Palestine
Forums
Legal Process, Media
Commissioned By
Adalah Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights
Summary
Our investigation reveals new evidence about massacres conducted in the Palestinian village of Tantura by Israeli forces after its occupation on 22-23 May 1948 and subsequent depopulation. Launched on the 75th anniversary of the Nakba, it brings together testimonies and photographic evidence to locate several mass graves in which the victims were buried—including one previously unidentified.

I.7  The Forest Under Detection

Date
1492 – Ongoing
Summary
Using spatial, image, and data analysis, we investigate the history of the Colombian states' cartographic domination of the Nukak people in the department of Guaviare.

I.72  Environmental Racism in Death Alley, Louisiana

Date of Incident
1718 – Ongoing
Location
'Death Alley', Louisiana, USA
Forums
Legal Process, United Nations, Exhibition, Media, Web Platform
In Partnership With
RISE St. James
Summary
A stretch of the Mississippi River once called 'Plantation Country' is now the 'Petrochemical Corridor', known to those who breathe its toxic air as 'Death Alley'. Using advanced techniques in cartography and fluid dynamics, we worked to support local demands for accountability and reparations.