US marks 25th 9/11 anniversary that changed America and the world
- The US marks 25 years since the September 11 attacks, honoring nearly 3,000 victims while remembering the firefighters and others whose lives were later cut short by exposure to toxic conditions at Ground Zero.
The United States on Friday marked the 25th anniversary of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, with solemn ceremonies in New York, Washington, DC, and Shanksville, Pennsylvania, honoring the 2,977 people killed in the deadliest attacks on US soil.
The main ceremony in New York brought together families of the victims, political leaders and former presidents for wreath-laying ceremonies, vigils and moments of silence marking the times when the hijacked planes struck the World Trade Center and the Twin Towers collapsed.
Family members read out the names of those killed in the attacks, along with the names of six people killed in a 1993 al-Qaeda bombing in the basement of the World Trade Center.
The ceremony also honored more than 600 firefighters who later died from illnesses linked to the toxic air and dust at Ground Zero.
New York Mayor Zoran Mamdani, Governor Kathy Hochul, former presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama and Joe Biden, and Vice President JD Vance attended the ceremony.
The September 11 attacks began when al-Qaeda hijacked four commercial airliners. Two planes were flown into the World Trade Center in New York, while another struck the Pentagon in Washington.
The fourth plane, United Airlines Flight 93, crashed in a field in Pennsylvania after passengers fought back against the hijackers, preventing the aircraft from reaching its intended target, identified in the source as the US Capitol. At the Pentagon, President Donald Trump addressed a separate ceremony and referred to the September 11 attacks while linking their legacy to the US conflict with Iran.
The anniversary was also marked by the NATO and European Union. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte recalled that the attacks prompted the alliance to invoke Article 5 of the NATO treaty for the first and only time in its history, underscoring the solidarity shown by NATO allies toward the United States.
A turning point for the world
The September 11 attacks had far-reaching consequences for the United States and the international community. They triggered the administration of President George W. Bush’s “War on Terror,” leading to the US war in Afghanistan and, later, the invasion of Iraq, even though Iraq was not involved in the September 11 attacks.
The attacks also transformed US airport security, government surveillance and counterterrorism policies. The period that followed saw the creation of the Department of Homeland Security and the passage of major security legislation, including the USA Patriot Act and measures associated with the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.
The attacks also had lasting social consequences, including a dramatic change in attitudes toward Muslims in the United States, dw.com reports.
Continuing human cost
A quarter century later, the consequences of September 11 continue to be felt. Toxic dust, smoke and debris from Ground Zero have been linked to thousands of deaths and illnesses among people exposed to the site.
According to a federal medical monitoring program cited in the source, at least 9,400 additional deaths have been linked to the long-term effects of exposure to the toxic environment following the attacks.
The 25th-anniversary commemorations therefore served not only as a remembrance of those killed on September 11, 2001, but also as a reflection on the political, military, security and social changes that followed and the continuing human cost of the tragedy.
