New York City September11. 2001 USA

On September 11, 2001, at 8:45 a.m. a hijacked passenger jet, American Airlines Flight 11 out of Boston, Massachusetts, crashes into the north tower of the World Trade Center, tearing a gaping hole in the building and setting it afire. At 9:03 a.m. a second hijacked airliner, United Airlines Flight 175 from Boston, crashes into the south tower of the World Trade Center and explodes. Both buildings are burning. At 10:05 a.m. the south tower of the World Trade Center collapses, plummeting into the streets below. A massive cloud of dust and debris forms and slowly drifts away from the building. At 10:28 a.m. the World Trade Center's north tower collapses from the top down as if it were being peeled apart, releasing a tremendous cloud of debris and smoke. Resulting in the loss of 2792 lives, including plane crews and passengers, building occupants, and rescue workers. According to the official 9/11 Commission Report, nineteen men affiliated with al-Qaeda, a network of militant Islamist organizations, hijacked four commercial airliners The militant Islamist al-Qaeda group praised the attacks, had been involved in several previous attacks on American targets, and its leaders hinted at their involvement in the incidents. Osama bin Laden had earlier declared a jihad against the United States. Shortly after the attacks, the United States government declared al-Qaeda and bin Laden the prime suspects. Photographed 05 April 2005.

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