“A sudden rumbling sound was heard, as if the ‘Gates of Hell’ had opened.”
Reflecting on the 9/11 terrorist attacks 23 years ago, New York resident Brooks still feels shaken. “The air was filled with dust, lights were flickering, windows were shaking, and buildings were swaying. People were screaming and crying.”
On September 11, 2001, planes hijacked by terrorists crashed into the World Trade Center. (Source: China News Video)
On September 11, 2001, the United States suffered the largest-scale attack in its history.
Terrorists hijacked four commercial airplanes to carry out suicide attacks on targets within the U.S. Two planes hit the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center, one crashed into a corner of the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, and the fourth plane crashed into a rural field in Pennsylvania.
These attacks killed approximately 3,000 people, but that was just the tip of the iceberg.
To this day, the “aftermath” of the 9/11 attacks continues to affect thousands of Americans.
The lingering “aftermath” of the attack still threatens their lives
Over the years, new names have been added to the memorial wall at the World Trade Center site almost every year.
In 2023 alone, the New York Fire Department added 43 names to the wall. The total number of firefighters killed in the attacks has now risen to 331.
This is because the collapse of buildings and subsequent fires during the attacks released a large amount of toxic dust, including pollutants like asbestos, silica, metal fragments, concrete, and glass, which severely harmed the health of firefighters, medical workers, and local residents, causing them to develop diseases such as cancer.
The World Trade Center Health Program released data in 2023 showing that over the past 20 years, these pollutants have caused various fatal illnesses, leading to the deaths of more than 4,000 survivors and first responders.
The organization fears that more people may die from these illnesses in the future.
“American-style counterterrorism” has come at a high cost to the world
In response to the 9/11 attacks, the U.S. government launched prolonged “counterterrorism wars” across the globe, causing the world to pay a heavy price.
Destroying Afghanistan, invading Iraq, destabilizing Syria… The U.S. has waged wars or conducted military operations in about 80 countries, resulting in the deaths of at least 800,000 people and displacing millions.
American citizens have also borne the costs of these wars.
Following 9/11, the U.S. military budget soared, squeezing the budget for public welfare and social services, exacerbating economic inequality and social division in the country.
Surveys also show that around 70% of Generation Z respondents believe that wars in the Middle East, including in Afghanistan, were a waste of time, lives, and taxpayers’ money and did not make the U.S. any safer.
When will the final judgment be reached?
For the families of the victims, the pain has never faded with time. The final judgment they seek is still far from being delivered.
For years, the legal proceedings surrounding the 9/11 attacks have been stuck in pretrial processes, mired in legal complications. During this time, suspects accused of orchestrating the attacks have been held at Guantanamo Bay.
Recently, The New York Times noted that “this case, which has faded from the public eye, is finally coming back into focus.”
On July 31, 2024, the Guantanamo Bay war court supervisor signed a plea agreement with three suspects involved in the 9/11 attacks. The three suspects agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy charges in exchange for life sentences rather than awaiting death penalty trials in Guantanamo.
NPR and Agence France-Presse pointed out that the case had stalled for years mainly because the suspects were tortured by the CIA, raising questions about the credibility of the evidence obtained during that time. Reaching a plea agreement could potentially avoid these legal issues.
However, the plea agreement has deeply disappointed and angered many 9/11 victims’ families, who believe it is “too lenient” and cuts off any possibility of a full trial and death sentence for the suspects.
Republican Vice Presidential candidate J.D. Vance also criticized the agreement, calling it “a secret deal with the 9/11 terrorists” and stating, “We need a president who will destroy terrorists, not negotiate with them.”
Under mounting pressure, the plea agreement was recently withdrawn by the U.S. Department of Defense. The New York Times reported that this means the death penalty is once again on the table.
Vigiano, a relative of one of the victims, welcomed this news and expressed hope that the suspects would be brought to justice through a trial in the future.
Another family member, Michael, condemned the U.S. government in an interview with the media, saying, “It is shameful that 23 years later, these suspects have still not been convicted and punished for their attacks. I never understood why it has taken so long.”
Twenty-three years have passed, and “American-style counterterrorism” is at an impasse. The U.S. remains mired in social division, racial discrimination, and gun violence. The trial of the 9/11 case continues to see little progress. When will the families of the victims finally get the justice they seek?
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