Twenty-five years have passed since September 11, 2001, yet for millions of Americans and people around the world, the images of that terrible morning remain difficult to forget. On that fateful day, 19 al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four commercial passenger planes and turned them into weapons of mass destruction. Two aircrafts were flown into New York City’s World Trade Center, bringing down the iconic Twin Towers. Another crashed into the Pentagon in Virginia, while United Airlines Flight 93 came down near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, after passengers bravely attempted to overpower the hijackers.
In the space of a few hours, 2,977 people lost their lives. They came from different backgrounds, professions, religions and nationalities. Some had gone to work that morning. Others were travelling to see loved ones or simply going about their daily lives. Firefighters, police officers, paramedics and other emergency workers rushed towards danger while others were desperately trying to escape it.
The attacks were terrible and changed America forever. They changed the way Americans travelled, the way governments viewed terrorism and national security, and the way the United States engaged with the wider world. The war in Afghanistan followed, airport security was dramatically tightened and the consequences of that September morning continued to shape international politics till this day.
But perhaps the most enduring story of 9/11 is not about buildings or governments. It is about people. It is the story of husbands and wives who never returned home, parents who never saw their children grow up, children who were left without parents and most unfortunately, families who have carried an empty space at their dinner tables for a quarter of a century.It is also the story of strangers helping strangers, emergency workers putting their own lives at risk, passengers making extraordinary decisions under unimaginable circumstances and communities coming together in the face of grief.
Today, September 11, 2026, America is once again pausing to remember. At the National September 11 Memorial Site in New York, relatives of the victims gathered to honour those whose lives were taken that morning. Their names were read aloud, as they have been on previous anniversaries, turning what could simply have been a historical event into a deeply personal remembrance of nearly 3,000 individual human beings. This year’s commemoration carries particular significance because it marks 25 years since the attacks. A growing number of Americans were not yet born, or were too young to remember, when the towers fell. For them, September 11 is history rather than personal memory. That reality has made the work of preserving the stories of the victims and teaching younger generations about what happened even more important.
As night falls over New York, the familiar Tribute in Light once again sends two powerful beams into the sky, recalling the Twin Towers and serving as a quiet reminder of the lives that disappeared with them. But remembrance is not limited to New York. Across America, people are reflecting on the courage of the first responders, the generosity of ordinary citizens and the resilience of families who have spent 25 years living with loss.
There is also a less visible legacy of September 11. Many first responders and recovery workers who survived the attacks later developed serious illnesses linked to their exposure at Ground Zero and other affected sites. For some families, therefore, the consequences of 9/11 did not end when the fires were extinguished or the rubble was cleared. The suffering continued for years and it’s very regrettable and unfortunate. That painful reality offers one of the clearest lessons of the anniversary and that is the fact that, the consequences of violence can last much longer than the violence itself. In deed 9/11 was a colossal disaster and the entire world is paying dearly for it.
There are other lessons too. September 11 demonstrated that no country, regardless of its military or economic strength, can afford to become complacent about security. It showed the importance of intelligence sharing, preparedness and the ability to recognise emerging threats before they become disasters. At the same time, it reminded the world that the fight against terrorism must not cause societies to lose sight of the values they are trying to protect. Security is important, but so are human rights, justice, tolerance and respect for human dignity. Perhaps the most important lesson, however, is the value of human solidarity. On September 11, America saw some of its darkest moments, but it also saw extraordinary courage. People who had never met one another helped each other. Emergency workers ran towards buildings from which everyone else was fleeing. Families waited anxiously for phone calls that never came. Communities opened their doors to strangers. Those were commendable life experiences and styles that should be encouraged. Twenty-five years later, those acts of courage remain as important as the tragedy itself.
Remembering 9/11 should therefore be more than repeating the words “never forget or never again.” It should mean remembering the people behind the numbers, remembering the sacrifices made by those who responded, supporting those still living with the consequences and teaching younger generations why peace, vigilance, tolerance and responsible leadership matter more than any other thing.
The buildings have been rebuilt. The skyline of New York has changed. A new generation has also grown. But the memory remains and perhaps the most fitting tribute to those who died is not simply to remember how they were lost, but to strive for a world in which no family will ever have to experience such loss again. Not just in America but all over the world.
