On the morning of Tuesday, September 11th, 2001, al-Qaeda, a terrorist organization based in the middle east carried out four attacks on the United States. Four different passenger airlines, all of which were departing the east coast en route to California, were hijacked by terrorists working for the organization. Two of the planes, American Airlines Flight 11 and United Airlines Flight 175, targeted the world trade center, which was a large commercial office complex located in New York City. A third plane, American Airlines Flight 77, was crashed into the west side of the Pentagon in Washington, DC. The fourth hijacked plane was en route to Washington, DC as well, but was crashed into a rural field after passengers onboard the flight charged the cockpit. The most prominent attack was the one carried out of the World Trade Center, which killed 2,606 people. Two planes were crashed into the World Trade Center which resulted in the collapse of the two largest towers, known as the twin towers, followed by the collapse of the rest of the complex. After the attacks, President Bush went into hiding and the rest of the Nation was put on high alert in lume of a follow up attack. Later, the middle eastern terrorist organization known as al-Qaeda claimed responsibility for the attacks
“One of the worst days in America’s history saw some of the bravest acts in Americans’ history. We’ll always honor the heroes of 9/11. And here at this hallowed place, we pledge that we will never forget their sacrifice.” |
Footage of The World Trade Center Collapsing(Via: One Media) |
HOW THE SEPTEMBER 11th Attacks CONTRIBUTED TO THE WAR ON TERROR
The September 11th attacks put al-Qaeda on the map and put terrorism on the world stage. This was the biggest attack on US soil since Pearl Harbor, and the whole world was watching to see how the United States would respond. President Bush made it clear that he intended on eliminating those who were responsible for the attacks. This event was a springboard into US involvement in the middle east. Today these attacks are still fresh in the hearts of Americans and serve as a symbol for American involvement in the war on terror.