US President Barack Obama and former President George Bush have joined hundreds of families at Ground Zero in New York for a service marking the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks Nearly 3,000 people died when al Qaeda hijackers brought down the World Trade Centre towers, flew a plane into the Pentagon and onto a field in Pennsylvania. Mr Obama and Mr Bush stood in silence as a bell rang twice at the precise moment the first jet smashed into the twin towers.
As cellist Yo Yo Ma played a mournful tune, relatives of the victims began entering the Ground Zero site, which has been transformed with a huge memorial. Tearful family members read out the names of their loved ones who perished in the attacks. A minute’s silence marked each moment a jet struck
The father of a 9/11 victim says a prayer at the 9/11 memorial
President Obama read a passage from Psalm 46 that speaks of God’s refuge and strength. Mr Bush read a Civil War letter from President Abraham Lincoln to a mother who lost all five of her sons.
The anniversary service began at 08.46am – the time the first plane hit the WTC’s North Tower. It was hosted by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg who said a “perfect blue sky” had turned into “the blackest of nights” on 9/11.
“They were our neighbours, our friends, our husbands, wives, brothers, sisters, children and parents,” he said of the victims. Singer Paul Simon later performed his classic song, The Sounds Of Silence.
The Ground Zero site now features a huge monument which opens to the public on Monday. The National September 11 Memorial has two reflecting pools, each almost an acre in size, in the footprints of the twin towers. The names of those who died on 9/11, as well as the six people killed in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, are inscribed on the edge of the pools in bronze.
The memorial lies next to a construction project where a massive skyscraper, office blocks, a transportation hub and a cultural centre are rapidly taking shape. Before the service President Obama visited the North Memorial Pool, which sits in the footprint of the north tower. He walked around the pool hand-in-hand with his wife Michelle, accompanied by Mr Bush and his wife Laura.
In a sombre moment, Mr Obama touched the names of the dead before greeting some family members and dignitaries.
Security officers at Ground Zero - roads leading to the site were blocked off
Law enforcement authorities in New York and Washington were on high alert after what was described as a “credible but unconfirmed” threat of an attack by al Qaeda.
Security was especially tight in Manhattan, where police set up vehicle checks on streets and at bridges and tunnels leading into the city.
Barricades were placed on every block near Ground Zero, with police asking members of the public for identification.
Thousands of people gathered near the site, some clutching American flags, to watch a large screen set up to show the remembrance ceremony.
Some wore T-shirts reading, “Never Forget,” a slogan popular since the attacks.
Mr Obama and his wife Michelle later travelled to Shanksville in Pennsylvania, where airline passengers fought back against hijackers and drove a plane into the ground.
It was believed the hijackers intended to fly the jet into the White House or the Capitol building.
The president was then due to return to Washington to lay a wreath at the Pentagon and attend the “Concert for Hope” at the Kennedy Centre.
Services marking the 9/11 attacks were held throughout the US on Sunday.
New Yorkers watch the Ground Zero service on a giant screen
Source : SKY
