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New York City: 11 septembre 2001

On the morning of September 11, 2001, the deadliest terrorist attacks in history occurred in the United States, concurrently in New York City, Washington, D.C. and near Pittsburgh. Four passenger jets were hijacked and three were deliberately crashed into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. Both towers of the World Trade Center subsequently collapsed, and part of the Pentagon was destroyed in the ensuing fire. The fourth hijacked plane crashed in a Pennsylvania field after passengers and crew tried to retake control of the plane from hijackers. Casualties were in the thousands: 265 on the planes; 2672 people, including 343 firefighters who had rushed in, at the World Trade Center; and 125 at the Pentagon.

Some passengers on the doomed flights were able to make phone calls reporting on events on board. They reported that there was more than one hijacker on each plane (a total of 19 were later identified) and that they took control of the planes using box-cutter knives.

The attack had immediate and profound global political effects and inspired an international outpouring of memorials and services amongst those sympathetic to the victims. There was also a significant amount of celebration in some communities hostile to US policies, which Americans generally found puzzling, disturbing and highly offensive. The massive undertaking of rescue and recovery took months, with the clean up continuing through May. The task of providing assistance to the survivors and the families of victims is ongoing.

Though no group has claimed responsibility, the U.S. government immediately launched a full-scale response, stating its intentions to go to war against those responsible. In late September, British Prime Minister Tony Blair released evidence compiled by Western intelligence agencies connecting Osama bin Laden, a wealthy Saudi terrorist with close ties with the Afghan Taliban leadership, and bin Laden's Al Qaida organisation. After trying and failing to get the Taliban to extradite Osama bin Laden and all other al Qaida leaders based in Afghanistan, a coalition led by the United States launched an attack in Afghanistan on October 7. After the U.S. attack removed the Taliban from power, a videotape was discovered abandoned in Kabul, the Afghan capital, which showed bin Laden discussing the attacks in a context which makes clear he approved.

Following the attack, the United States government has been on heightened alert for new terrorist attacks, periodically warning of "imminent attacks". In late September, cases of anthrax started breaking out; no connection to the September 11 attack has been found, though reports emerged in March 2002 that one of the hijackers was infected with cutaneous anthrax.

The fires at the World Trade Center site continued to burn for three months while rescue workers removed and sifted through debris. Five months after the attack, the last survivors were released from the hospital. By six months afterwards, the 1.5 million tons of debris had been removed from the WTC site and work continued below ground level despite concerns that the seawall around the site might collapse. Ceremonies marking the end of the debris removal took place at the end of May 2002 >> more...

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