"Never Forget" 22nd Anniversary Memorial Ceremony for 9/11 Terror Attacks in the US

At 8:46 a.m. local time on September 11, hundreds of people standing on the streets around Ground Zero in Manhattan, New York, bowed their heads in silence as the bells rang out. This was the exact time in 2001 when the terrorist hijackers aboard American Airlines Flight 11 first crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center (WTC), marking the worst terrorist attack in U.S. history.

On the morning of the 22nd anniversary of the attack, New York once again paused to honor the victims. The memorial ceremony held at the 9/11 Memorial Plaza in front of Ground Zero proceeded as usual, with family members on stage calling out the names of nearly 3,000 victims one by one. At 9:03 a.m., everyone observed a moment of silence again as the bells rang, marking the time when United Airlines Flight 175 struck the South Tower of the WTC. Additional moments of silence were held six times in total, including at 9:37 a.m. when American Airlines Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon, at 9:59 a.m. when the South Tower collapsed, at 10:03 a.m. when United Airlines Flight 93 crashed near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, and at 10:28 a.m. when the North Tower collapsed.

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Each time the family members on stage finished calling out the names of their assigned victims, they expressed their heartfelt longing, saying things like "Dad, I love you. I miss you," and "September 11, 2023, you would have been 26 years old if you were alive." The total number of victims who died in the attack was 2,983. The memorial event, during which the victims’ names were called, lasted a total of four hours. Around Ground Zero, many people were seen wearing clothing with photos of their loved ones or holding framed pictures. Outside the restricted area, large crowds also gathered to honor the victims together.

Gabrielle Gabrielle, who lost her uncle and godfather Richard Gabriel in the attack, said, "Having my uncle’s name called at the memorial will be the greatest honor of my life," adding, "We must remember the victims. This is their legacy. Their final resting place." Laura Cavanaugh of the FDNY said, "Like many others, I still remember that day and that moment," and added, "We want to talk about their lives, not the loss." A total of 343 firefighters from the FDNY who were deployed to the scene died in the attack. The number of firefighters who have died since then from illnesses and aftereffects related to the attack is approaching a similar level.

[Image source=Getty Images Yonhap News]

[Image source=Getty Images Yonhap News]

General Mark Milley, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who attended the event, said, "We will never forget what happened at 9:37 a.m. on September 11, 22 years ago," and added, "The terrorists tried to destroy our country. But on that day and since, America has shown that we will never succumb to fear and hatred." The memorial ceremony was attended by Vice President Kamala Harris, New York Mayor Eric Adams, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, New York Governor Kathy Hochul, and others in place of President Joe Biden. President Biden stopped by the military base in Anchorage, Alaska, on his way back from attending the G20 summit and visiting Vietnam to attend the memorial. This was the first time a U.S. president attended the memorial in the western part of the country.

The 9/11 memorial ceremony was also held at the Pentagon near Washington, D.C. At the event, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin expressed condolences to the families of the victims, saying, "9/11 changed your lives forever," and added, "But you have changed us forever." Secretary Austin emphasized, "It is our duty to carry out the mission your loved ones chose," and "It is also our duty to protect the democracy they loved."

[Image source=Getty Images Yonhap News]

The 9/11 attacks were the worst tragedy in U.S. history, carried out by the Islamic fundamentalist group al-Qaeda in 2001 by hijacking four civilian passenger planes. Two of the planes were used in suicide attacks on the New York WTC buildings, another attacked the Pentagon, and the fourth, believed to have targeted the U.S. Capitol, crashed in Pennsylvania after passengers resisted.

This year’s memorial was held just days after the identification of two more victims, 22 years after the attacks. Earlier, the New York City Medical Examiner’s Office notified families after confirming the identities of the 1,648th male and 1,649th female victims through advanced DNA analysis. However, more than 1,100 victims remain unidentified.

On this day, public buildings across the U.S., including in New York, flew flags at half-staff. Major Manhattan buildings such as the Empire State Building were illuminated in blue. At Ground Zero, a lighting ceremony was held from sunset, projecting two blue beams of light into the sky symbolizing the Twin Towers to honor the victims.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.