US Marks 25 Years Since 9/11 As Leaders Honour Nearly 3,000 Victims

The United States has marked the 25th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, with current and former presidents joining families and survivors to honour the nearly 3,000 people killed. Ceremonies were held in New York, Washington and Pennsylvania, while events also took place in countries including Britain, Canada and Italy. The anniversary also highlighted the long-term health effects suffered by survivors and first responders, with deaths from related illnesses now exceeding the number killed on the day itself. Families continue to seek answers and accountability, while communities around the world remember the lasting impact of the attacks

AMERICA REMEMBERS 9/11 VICTIMS

The United States has marked the 25th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, with ceremonies across the country honouring the nearly 3,000 people who lost their lives.
The anniversary brought together current and former US presidents, first ladies, families of victims, survivors, emergency responders and members of the public at memorial sites in New York, Washington and Pennsylvania.
Moments of silence were observed at the exact times the hijacked planes struck the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, as well as when the towers collapsed.
The names of those killed were also read aloud during a ceremony in New York that lasted almost four hours.

TRUMP LEADS PENTAGON CEREMONY

President Donald Trump led a memorial ceremony at the Pentagon, where he was joined by members of his administration and Condoleezza Rice, who was serving as US secretary of state at the time of the attacks.
Trump urged Americans to continue remembering those who died and connected the legacy of the attacks to his administration’s current foreign policy.
“Today we renew the sacred oath that we first swore in their names a quarter of a century ago,” Trump said, stressing that the United States would never forget the victims.
He also referred to the conflicts that followed the attacks and linked the fight against terrorism to the current confrontation with Iran, saying the Islamic Republic would never be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon.

FORMER PRESIDENTS REUNITE IN NEW YORK

Vice-President JD Vance attended the main memorial ceremony at the World Trade Center site in New York.
All four living former US presidents — George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Bill Clinton and Joe Biden — were also present, alongside their wives.
Bush was president when the attacks occurred and became the central political figure during the US response to 9/11.
The gathering provided a rare public moment in which leaders from different political generations stood together to remember one of the most consequential events in modern American history.

THE ATTACKS THAT CHANGED AMERICA

On September 11, 2001, 19 al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four commercial passenger planes.
Two aircraft were deliberately flown into the World Trade Center’s Twin Towers in New York, while another struck the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia.
The fourth aircraft, United Airlines Flight 93, crashed into a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, after passengers and crew attempted to regain control of the plane.
The attacks killed almost 3,000 people and triggered a major transformation of US domestic security and foreign policy.
The United States subsequently launched its so-called “war on terror”, beginning with military action in Afghanistan and later expanding into the Iraq War.

SURVIVOR RECALLS THE HORROR

For survivors, the anniversary remains deeply personal.
Janice Brooks had moved to New York only weeks before the attacks and was working for a company on the 84th floor of the South Tower.
She was in her office when the first plane struck the North Tower.
As she evacuated the building, the second aircraft hit the South Tower.
Brooks recalled hearing a powerful impact and witnessing scenes of devastation as people tried to escape.
Her experience reflects the thousands of individual stories behind the enormous death toll — people who went to work, travelled by plane or responded to an emergency that morning and never returned home.

BELLS MARK THE MOMENTS OF THE ATTACKS

At the World Trade Center memorial, bells were rung to mark the precise moments associated with the attacks and the collapse of the Twin Towers.
Each bell was followed by a period of silence.
This year, an additional bell was included to remember people who died in the years after 9/11 from illnesses linked to the attacks.
The additional remembrance reflects the long-term health consequences experienced by survivors, rescue workers and others exposed to dust and smoke following the collapse of the buildings.
US health officials say deaths from illnesses associated with exposure have now exceeded three times the number of people killed directly on September 11.

FAMILIES CONTINUE TO SEEK ANSWERS

The 25th anniversary also renewed questions from some victims’ families about accountability for the attacks.
Terry Strada, whose husband Tom was killed on 9/11, criticised what she described as the failure of US authorities to hold Saudi Arabia accountable for its alleged role.
Strada, the national chairperson of 9/11 Families United, asked why families were still seeking answers 25 years after the attacks.
Most of the 19 hijackers were Saudi nationals, while al-Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden, who was born into a prominent Saudi family, directed the organisation behind the attacks.
However, Saudi Arabia has repeatedly denied involvement.
The 9/11 Commission, which investigated the attacks, reported in 2004 that it found no evidence that the Saudi government as an institution or senior Saudi officials individually funded al-Qaeda.

MEMORIALS HELD AROUND THE WORLD

The anniversary was not marked only in the United States.
In London, a ceremonial event was held at Buckingham Palace, attended by British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband and US Ambassador to the United Kingdom Warren Stephens.
In Canada, the Toronto Stock Exchange held a remembrance ceremony for colleagues who died in the attacks.
Events were also held in other cities as communities remembered the international dimension of the tragedy.

GANDER REMEMBERS ITS ROLE

In Gander, Newfoundland, the anniversary carried a particularly strong connection to the events of 2001.
When US airspace was closed following the attacks, thousands of passengers aboard diverted flights were stranded in the small Canadian town.
Gander took in passengers from 38 aircraft, providing them with food, accommodation and other assistance while they waited for the crisis to ease.
US Ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra thanked the town and Canada for the support given to Americans during one of the darkest moments in US history.
His appearance came amid strained US-Canada relations and an ongoing trade dispute between the two countries.

FIREFIGHTERS HONOUR FALLEN COLLEAGUES

In Milan, Italy, Italian and US firefighters held a ceremonial stair climb to remember emergency responders who died while trying to save people during the attacks.
Wearing their uniforms and carrying equipment, they climbed the Galfa Tower in a symbolic recreation of the effort made by firefighters who entered the Twin Towers.
The building’s 110 floors represented the number of storeys in each of the World Trade Center towers.
Firefighters were among the many emergency workers who lost their lives while responding to the attacks.

A LEGACY THAT CONTINUES

Twenty-five years later, the effects of 9/11 continue to shape American society and international politics.
The attacks transformed airport security, intelligence operations, counter-terrorism policies and US relations with countries across the Middle East and beyond.
They also left a lasting human legacy through the families who lost loved ones, survivors living with physical and psychological injuries, and first responders who later developed serious illnesses.
For the United States and many other countries, the 25th anniversary is therefore not simply a commemoration of a single day.
It is a reminder of the lives lost, the decisions made in response, and the consequences that continue to be felt a quarter of a century later.