September 11, 2001, has forever been marked as a day of remembrance. The tragic terrorist attack took nearly 3,000 people’s lives. That day, four planes were hijacked by the Al Qaeda terrorist group. Two of those planes flew into the World Trade Center’s Twin Towers in New York which upon impact collapsed the buildings. Prior to 9/11, they were the tallest buildings in New York. They were completed in 1973 and for some time they were the tallest buildings in the world.
One of the planes flew into the Pentagon located in the nation’s capital of Washington D.C. The fourth plane, known as Flight 93, crashed into a field in Pennsylvania after passengers fought back. It was the only plane that didn’t reach its target. Ziah Jarrah, was one of the plane’s hijackers and also a trained pilot. According to The 9/11 Commission Report, “Jarrah’s objective was to crash his airliner into symbols of the American Republic, the Capitol or the White House,” the report claims. “He was defeated by the alerted, unarmed passengers of United 93.” After the plane crashed near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, all 44 passengers were killed upon impact.
Today’s Remembrance
Vice President Kamala Harris is joined by several other politicians such as New York City Mayor Eric Adams, former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg, and Rudy Giuliani as well as Republican presidential candidate and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis attended Ground Zero with mourners today (Sept. 11, 2023). None of the politicians were scheduled to speak during the ceremony. Names of the nearly 3,000 dead are called out in remembrance. President Biden was not in attendance in New York as he is attending a memorial ceremony in Alaska on the heels of his trip to Asia.
Take a look at five documentaries that tell the tale of the heart-wrenching event of September 11, 2001. From these documentaries, you will see exclusive interviews with heroes and witnesses as well as the historical impact of this tragic event.