Using RS and AI GIS in land management and urban planning in Mosul, Iraq for sustainable development

The importance of Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) comes from the fact that they are means that have been proven effective in supporting and developing the decision-making process in the field of urban control. The city of Mosul in Iraq has been subjected to a tremendous change in the dynamics of land use due to the wars. This study aims to use RS techniques and Artificial Intelligence Geographic Information Systems (AI GIS), as the study relies on Sentinel-2 images and online data sources to evaluate the changes that occurred in the natural environment by comparing the years during and after the destruction. Four classification methods were used in this study; Support Vector Machine (SVM) learning, Scene Classification technique (SC), Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), and Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI). High classifications accuracies were obtained ranging between (92%–97%). The residential area had decreased, followed by vegetation, which was converted to bare land by 64% in the year 2017 due to the war effect. In 2023 some recovery of settlement and increasing in other sectors was observed. The approach highlights the capability of spatial technologies and the role of RS and GIS in sustainable development.