What is 9/11?
It was the worst attack on American soil since the Japanese
attacked Pearl Harbor in 1941.
The world trade centre was both a commercial and a
residential centre. It lay at the heart of one of the world’s
largest cities, New York.
Almost 3,000 people were killed from 93 different countries,
out of that more than 300 were firefighters, who died while
saving the citizens.
The attacks against America caused extensive death and
destruction and triggered an enormous U.S. effort to
combat terrorism.
What happened on that day?
On the morning of 11 September 2001, 19 terrorists from Al-
Qaeda hijacked four commercial aircraft and crashed two of
them into the North and South Towers of the World Trade
Center complex in New York City.
A third plane crashed into the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia.
After learning about the other attacks, passengers on the
fourth hijacked plane, Flight 93, fought back, and the plane
was crashed into an empty field in western Pennsylvania about
20 minutes by air from Washington, D.C.
How it happened?
airplanes
a) American Airline Flight 11
b) United Airlines Flight 175
c) American Airline Flight 77
d) United Flight 93
Why it happened?
Al-Qaeda is a militant Islamist organization founded in 1988. The
group's name, "Al-Qaeda," means "The Base" in Arabic, reflecting
its origins as a base of operations for fighters who had gathered
in Afghanistan. The founder and prominent leader of the group
was Osama Bin Laden. He advocates for global jihad to establish
a pan-Islamic sultanate.
Some of the reasons
In the same year, an International Coalition led by the USA
invaded Afghanistan. The Taliban regime was removed from
power and a new government was formed. As a result, the Al-
Quade took revenge on America by hijacking the planes and
crashing them.
Al-Qaeda opposed the presence of U.S. military bases in Saudi
Arabia, which is home to Islam's two holiest sites, Mecca, and
Medina. Osama bin Laden saw this as a desecration of sacred
Islamic lands.
The Al-Qaeda viewed [Link] governments in the Middle
East as corrupt, and illegitimate, and sought to overthrow
them, replacing them with Islamist regimes.
The impact of the incident on America
world markets was badly shaken, fears of stock market panic
kept New York markets closed for four trading days. Markets
afterward suffered record losses.
U.S. airspace remained closed for commercial aviation until
September 13.
Security measures within the United States were tightened
considerably at airports, government buildings, and
sports venues.
Evidence gathered by the United States soon convinced most
governments that the Islamic militant group al-Qaeda was
responsible for the attacks.
A cabinet-level Department of Homeland Security was
established.
To help facilitate the domestic response, Congress quickly
passed the USA PATRIOT Act (the Uniting and Strengthening
America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept
and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001), which significantly but
temporarily expanded the search and surveillance powers of
the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and other law-
enforcement agencies.
In the immediate aftermath of the attacks, firefighters and
rescue and recovery workers began to report a range of health
issues, particularly respiratory problems. The most common
was a collection of ailments that came to be called “WTC
Cough Syndrome.
Impact of the Incidence on the World
After the attacks of September 11, countries allied with the
United States rallied to its support, perhaps best symbolized by
the French newspaper Le Monde’s headline, “We are all
Americans now.”
For the first time in its history, the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization (NATO) invoked Article 5, allowing its members to
respond collectively in self-defense, and on October 7 the U.S.
and allied military forces launched an attack against
Afghanistan.
Even in Iran, thousands gathered in the capital, for a
candlelight vigil.
Memorial
The physical and symbolic void left by the destruction of the
Twin Towers was filled on November 3, 2014, with the opening
of One World Trade Center, a 1,776-foot skyscraper.
Adjacent to One World Trade Center are the National
September 11 Memorial and Museum.
Within the 8 acre memorial plaza, twin 1-acre reflecting pools
occupy the footprints of the Twin Towers and are edged
by bronze panels inscribed with the names of the victims of the
September 11 attacks.
The museum’s Memorial Hall is adorned with 2,983 tiles each
one a blue watercolour with which artist Spencer Finch
attempted to capture the colour of the sky on the day of the
September 11 attacks.
At the centre of the tiles is a quote: No day shall erase you
from the memory of time.
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I will not wait on events while dangers gather. I will not stand by as
a peril draws closer and closer. The USA will not permit the world’s
most dangerous regimes to threaten us with the world’s most
destructive weapons.