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NEW YORK – The 9/11 anniversary commemoration at Ground Zero began with a bell ringing and a minute of silence, exactly 20 years after the start of the deadliest terrorist attack on American soil.
President Joe Biden, former Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton, members of Congress and other dignitaries joined a crowd of relatives of the victims on Saturday in the 9/11 Memorial Square in New York City. The memorial stands where the twin towers of the World Trade Center were struck and shot down by hijacked planes.
Celebrations are also planned at the two other sites where the 9/11 conspirators crashed their hijacked planes: the Pentagon and a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
Biden is due to pay homage at all three locations, and former President George W. Bush is due to speak at the ceremony in Pennsylvania.
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MORE ON SEPT. 11:
– From the ashes of September 11, a new world has taken shape. it didn’t last
– Surviving September 11 was “just the first part of the journey”
– September 11: Over the decades, the act of remembering evolves
– How September 11 Changed Air Travel: More Security, Less Privacy
– Two decades after 9/11, American Muslims still struggle against prejudice
– 20 years later, the fallout from toxic dust from the WTC multiplies
– They were some of the biggest names in 9/11. Where are they now?
– From COVID elections, 9/11 plots cast a long shadow
– Read these stories and more AP coverage of the 9/11 anniversary at: https://apnews.com/hub/9-11-a-world-changed.
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KABUL, Afghanistan – The Taliban flag flies over the Afghan Presidential Palace on the same day the United States and the world mark the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.
Saturday’s milestone anniversary comes just weeks after the chaotic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan and the return to power of the Taliban, the faction that housed the Muslim militant group founded by Osama bin Laden that carried out the attacks.
The Taliban flag was hoisted on Friday and could be seen flying above the presidential palace in Kabul on Saturday.
The United States is expected to mark the anniversary of September 11 with commemorations at New York’s World Trade Center, the Pentagon and in a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
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WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama hailed the heroes of 9/11 – and the years that followed – in a message marking the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attacks.
“One thing that became clear on 9/11 – and still is since – is that America has always been home to heroes who run into danger in order to do what is right,” said Obama, who served as President of the United States from 2009 to 2017.
He said the lasting image for him and his wife Michelle from that day was not wreckage and destruction but people. He distinguished the firefighters who were climbing the stairs as others descended, the passengers who stormed the cockpit of their plane and the volunteers who showed up across the country in the days that followed.
“Over the past 20 years, we have seen the same courage and the same selflessness displayed over and over again,” Obama said.
“We saw it ten years ago when, after years of perseverance, our military brought justice to Osama bin Laden. And we see it today – in bone-weary doctors and nurses doing what they can to save lives; the military, some of whom were not even born 20 years ago, putting themselves at risk to save Americans and help refugees find a better life; first responders battling roaring fires and rising waters to bring families to safety. “
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LONDON – Queen Elizabeth II celebrated the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks by offering condolences to the victims, survivors and families affected by the atrocity.
In a message to US President Joe Biden, the British monarch recalled the “terrible attacks” on New York and Washington, DC
“My thoughts and prayers – and those of my family and the entire nation – are with the victims, survivors and affected families, as well as first responders and rescue workers called to work,” she said.
“My visit to the World Trade Center site in 2010 remains etched in my memory. It reminds me that as we honor those of many nations, faiths and origins who have lost their lives, we also honor the resilience and determination of the communities who have come together to rebuild. ”
Prime Minister Boris Johnson also recalled the attacks, issuing a statement ahead of the anniversary saying the terrorists had failed “to undermine our belief in freedom and democracy”.
“They have failed to separate our nations, or to make us abandon our values, or to live in permanent fear.”
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SEOUL, South Korea – South Korean President Moon Jae-in has expressed his “deepest condolences” to US President Joe Biden and the American people on the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks and said South Korea in as a key ally will continue to support US efforts to combat terrorism.
Moon, in a message posted to Twitter and Facebook on Saturday, said that “the shock of that day still remains deep wounds in the hearts of so many” and that “no violence can prevail against peace and peace. ‘inclusion”.
He said South Korea, as a “strong ally of the United States, will continue to actively join your efforts and those of the international community to fight terrorism.”
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NEW YORK – The United States is set to mark the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on Saturday with commemorations at New York’s World Trade Center, the Pentagon and in a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
The milestone anniversary comes just weeks after the chaotic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan and the return to power of the Taliban, the faction that housed the Muslim militant group founded by Osama bin Laden that carried out the attacks.
It was also occurring amid continued concern over the COVID-19 pandemic, which has now killed more than 11 times as many people in New York City as the nearly 3,000 who perished in the 2001 attack on the World Trade Center.
President Joe Biden is due to visit the three sites of the 2001 attacks.
Former President George W. Bush is expected to speak at the Pennsylvania Memorial. More celebrations are planned across the country.
Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
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