What happened on the morning of September 11, 2001?
On September 11, 2001, nineteen terrorists associated with al-Qaeda, an Islamist extremist group, hijacked four commercial airplanes scheduled to fly from the East Coast to California. In a coordinated attack that turned the planes into weapons, the terrorists intentionally flew two of the planes into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center, a global business complex in New York City, causing the towers to collapse. They also flew a third plane into the Pentagon, the headquarters of the U.S. Department of Defense, in Arlington, Virginia. Passengers and crew members on the fourth plane launched a counterattack, forcing the hijacker pilot—who was flying the airplane toward Washington, D.C.—to crash the plane into a field in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, near the town of Shanksville.
The 9/11 attacks killed 2,977 people. This was the single largest loss of life resulting from a foreign attack on American soil. The attacks caused the deaths of 441 first responders, the greatest loss of emergency responders on a single day in American history.
What are some of the ongoing repercussions of the 9/11 attacks?
On September 20, 2001, U.S. President George W. Bush announced that the United States had declared war on “a radical network of terrorists and every government that supports them.” The U.S. government initiated a Global War on Terror, sending troops to Afghanistan in October 2001 and later to Iraq. The 9/11 attacks prompted calls for new strategies to keep the nation safe. The USA PATRIOT Act, passed in October 2001, expanded the government’s intelligence-gathering tools and its ability to detain and deport immigrants suspected of terrorism. Many people continue to debate whether the methods used after 9/11 effectively protect national security without compromising civil liberties.
The 9/11 attacks also continue to affect individuals’ health. Immediately after the collapse of the Twin Towers, layers of thick gray dust and ash coated the site and surrounding areas. Days after the attack, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency declared the air in lower Manhattan safe, but the dust—made of destroyed building materials, industrial chemicals, and electronics mingled with jet fuel residue—was later determined to be hazardous.
More than 400,000 survivors, first responders, rescue and recovery workers, cleaning crews, lower Manhattan residents, and others are estimated to have been exposed to these toxins on 9/11 or during the nine-month rescue and recovery operations at Ground Zero. Tens of thousands nationwide are now suffering from chronic illnesses, including respiratory diseases, mental health issues, and more than 100 different types of cancer. More than 2,000 of those exposed have died.
Who was responsible for the 9/11 attacks and why did they attack the United States?
The terrorist organization al-Qaeda was responsible for the 9/11 attacks. Founded by Osama bin Laden, al-Qaeda is responsible for multiple terrorist attacks since its founding in the 1980s. Their aim has been to overthrow governments in the Middle East, and elsewhere in the Muslim world, which does not strictly enforce a narrow, fundamentalist version of Islam. U.S. support for these governments was viewed by al-Qaeda as a major obstacle to this goal, and they hoped these attacks would weaken American support for these governments. Al-Qaeda represents only a tiny fraction of the world’s Muslim community.
Osama bin Laden, the mastermind behind the September 11th attacks, remained at large until May 2, 2011, when he was finally tracked down and killed by U.S. forces at a hideout in Abbottabad, Pakistan. In June 2011, then-President Barack Obama announced the beginning of large-scale troop withdrawals from Afghanistan; it took until August 2021 for all U.S. forces to withdraw.
How did people come together in the aftermath of 9/11?
The urge to mourn alongside others brought people together throughout New York City, across the country, and around the world. People gathered in parks and town halls, on college campuses, and in places of worship. Spontaneous memorials appeared in town squares, on roadside billboards, and outside firehouses and police stations. People of different ages, backgrounds, and abilities also found meaning in public service after the 9/11 attacks. Volunteers flocked to lower Manhattan from around the country to provide assistance. Some signed on with organizations such as the American Red Cross and the Salvation Army, while others volunteered independently. Across the country, many people channeled their emotions by enlisting in the military, founding charities, contributing to philanthropic causes, or helping those in need in other ways.
What was the World Trade Center and why was it important?
The original World Trade Center was a 16-acre complex in New York City, comprising seven buildings that housed more than 430 businesses from around the world. The Twin Towers, two 110-story skyscrapers at the World Trade Center, dominated the Manhattan skyline for three decades before their destruction in 2001. Although initially criticized for their audacious height and severe architectural style, the buildings took on iconic status in the public imagination, becoming emblematic of New York City and America as a whole.
Their fame and symbolism made the Twin Towers the targets of two terrorist attacks. The first took place on February 26, 1993, when a van loaded with approximately 1,200 pounds of explosives was detonated in the public parking garage beneath the World Trade Center. The second took place on September 11, 2001, when members of the terrorist group al-Qaeda flew two hijacked planes into the buildings, leading to their collapse.
9/11 Timeline: The Attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City
Primary Sources:
These primary resources include speeches, executive orders, legislative acts and debates, and government reports. Story via 9/11 Memorial & Museum.
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