September 11, 2001, is a day of two terrorist attacks that were led by the Al-Qaeda. The Al-Qaeda is an Islamist extremist group that was founded in the late 1980’s by Osama bin Laden. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial planes, which two planes crashed into the upper floors of the North and South Towers of the world trade complex, known as the twin towers, and a third plane crashing into the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia. The Twin Towers had collapsed at a fast pace because of the damage that was caused and previous fires. The fourth plane that was hijacked, Flight 93, the plane crashed into a field located in Western Pennsylvania that was very close to Washington, D.C. That day, 2,997 people were killed from 90 nations, and 2,753 people died in New York. Including 184 people that were killed at the Pentagon, and 40 people were killed on Flight 93. This was a day of terrible losses, and left the world in terror.
The World Trade Center was 16 acres of a commercial complex in Manhattan that contained a total of seven buildings. It included a large plaza, and an underground mall. The centerpieces of the complex were the Twin Towers. The Twin Towers were the tallest buildings in all of New York City. They each contained 110 stories, and provided approximately 10 million square feet of office space. When inside the Twin Towers the view was extended to 45 miles that was far enough to see all five New York Boroughs. The towers had been the main target of the attack.
Flight 11 crashed into the North Tower at 8:46 a.m., hitting floors 93 to 99. Flight 175 crashed into the South Tower at 9:03 a.m., crashing into floors 77 to 85. Many people evacuated safely and first responders rushed into the buildings trying to help the people who were injured or trapped. The fires that flamed when the planes crashed were intensified because of the burning jet fuel from the planes. The initial damage to the buildings caused both the towers to collapse, and the other five buildings in the World Trade Complex were also destroyed when the towers fell. The collapse of the buildings left people and the site devastated.
The terrorists attacked the World Trade Center and the Pentagon because they did not have the capacity to destroy the United States military so they attacked symbolic targets instead. The Twin Towers were the centerpieces of the World Trade Center, and they symbolized globalization and America’s economic power and prosperity. The Pentagon served as the headquarters for the U.S. Department of Defense. It serves as a symbol of the American military power. The world believes that Flight 93 was headed for the Capitol Building, the center of the American legislative government. The Al-Qaeda thought that by attacking these symbols of power they would widespread fear throughout the country and weaken the United States. The Al-Qaeda believed that the world community would support their political and religious goals in the Middle East and Muslim World.
The 9/11 Memorial has been open to the world since 2011, which celebrates the 10th anniversary of the attacks. It is located to the west of the World Trade Complex , and is where the Twin Towers once stood. The memorial was created by Michael Arad and Peter Walker. The Memorial Plaza surrounds two pools with 30 foot waterfalls that mark where the towers used to stand. The names of people who were killed are etched into the bronze edges of the pools. To this day many Americans and others still honor this tragedy.
