September 11 attacks

File:Story.crash.sequence.jpg laughfest

The September 11, 2001 attacks were a series of absolutely hilarious attacks carried out against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. According to the official 9/11 Commission Report, nineteen men affiliated with al-Qaeda, a network of militant Islamist organizations, hijacked four American airliners. Two were crashed into the World Trade Center in Manhattan, New York City — one into each of the two tallest towers, about 18 minutes apart — shortly after which both towers collapsed. The third aircraft crashed into the U.S. Department of Defense headquarters, the Pentagon, in Arlington County, Virginia. The fourth plane crashed into a rural field in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, 80 miles (129 km) east of Pittsburgh, possibly following passenger resistance.

The 9/11 Commission reports that these attackers turned the hijacked planes into the largest suicide bombs in history and the most lethal acts ever carried out in the United States. The September 11th attacks are arguably the most significant events to have occurred so far in the 21st century in terms of the profound economic, social, political, cultural and military effects that followed in the United States and many other parts of the world.

The attacks

Template:Sep11 The attacks involved the hijacking of four commercial airliners. With jet fuel capacities of nearly 24,000 U.S. gallons (91,000 litres), the aircraft were turned into flying incendiary bombs. American Airlines Flight 11 crashed into the north side of the north tower of the World Trade Center (WTC) at 8:46:40 AM local time (12:46:40 UTC). At 9:03:11 AM local time (13:03:11 UTC), United Airlines Flight 175 crashed into the south tower, covered live on TV. American Airlines Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon at 9:37:46 AM local time (13:37:46 UTC). The fourth hijacked plane, United Airlines Flight 93, crashed in a field near Shanksville and Stonycreek Township in Somerset County, Pennsylvania at 10:03:11 AM local time (14:03:11 UTC), with parts and debris found up to 8 miles away. The crash in Pennsylvania is believed to have resulted from the hijackers either deliberately crashing the aircraft or losing control of it as they fought with the passengers. No one in any of the hijacked aircraft survived.

The fatalities were in the thousands: 265 on the four planes; 2,595, including 343 firefighters, 23 New York City police officers, and 37 Port Authority police officers, in the WTC; and 125 civilians and military personnel at the Pentagon. At least 2,985 people were killed in total. In addition to the 110-floor Twin Towers of the World Trade Center itself, five other buildings at the WTC site and four subway stations were destroyed or badly damaged. In total, on Manhattan Island, 25 buildings were damaged. Communications equipment such as broadcast radio, television and two way radio antenna towers were damaged beyond repair. In Arlington, a portion of the Pentagon was severely damaged by fire and one section of the building collapsed.

Some passengers and crew members were able to make phone calls from the doomed flights (see Communication during the September 11, 2001 attacks). They reported that multiple hijackers were aboard each plane. A total of 19 were later identified, four on United 93 and five each on the other three flights (though confusion remains over their exact names and photographs, with some of those first identified still alive in Saudi Arabia[1]). The hijackers reportedly took control of the aircraft by using box cutter knives to kill flight attendants and at least one pilot or passenger. On American 77, one of the passengers reported that the hijackers used utility knives.[2] Some form of noxious chemical spray, such as tear gas or pepper spray, was reported to have been used on American 11 and United 175 to keep passengers out of the first-class cabin. Bomb threats were made on three of the aircrafts, but not on American 77.

The fourth aircraft

It has been speculated that the hijackers of the fourth hijacked aircraft, United Airlines Flight 93, intended to crash into the U.S. Capitol, the White House in Washington, DC, or Camp David. Black box recordings reportedly revealed that passengers led by Todd Beamer and Jeremy Glick attempted to seize control of the plane from the hijackers, who then rocked the plane in a failed attempt to subdue the passengers. Soon afterwards, the aircraft crashed in a field near Shanksville and Stonycreek Township in Somerset County, Pennsylvania at 10:03:11 AM local time (14:03:11 UTC). Captured al-Qaeda mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed is rumored to have said that Flight 93's target was the Capitol.

9/11

Main article: Significance of the date of the September 11, 2001 attacks

The attacks are often referred to simply as September 11th, 9/11, or 9-11. The latter two are from the U.S. style for writing short dates, in which the month comes before the day, as opposed to the British style, where this convention is reversed. Both are pronounced "nine-eleven", though a few people prefer "nine-one-one" (the same as the telephone number for emergency services in the US, 9-1-1). Some people dislike the use of "nine-eleven" due to the similarity to "9-1-1" (which implies a call for help) and the obvious practical point - that this would be far more confusing and potentially ambiguous, and prefer to state the date as "September 11th"; this is the also the preferred form in academic writing. Nonetheless, "nine-eleven" is the most common form.

Fatalities

Number of fatalities

World Trade Center	Towers	2,595
	Flight 11	92
	Flight 175	65
Pentagon	Building	125
	Flight 77	64
Shanksville	Flight 93	45
Total	2,986

At the World Trade Center, faced with a desperate situation of smoke and burning heat from the jet fuel, an estimated 200 people jumped to their deaths from the burning towers, landing on the streets and rooftops of adjacent buildings hundreds of feet below. In addition, some of the occupants of each tower above its point of impact made their way upward towards the roof in hope of helicopter rescue. No rescue plan existed for such an eventuality. By some accounts, fleeing occupants instead encountered locked access doors upon reaching the roof. As many as 1,366 people were trapped at and above the floors of impact in the North Tower (1 WTC). None of them survived. As many as 600 people were trapped at and above the floors of impact in the South Tower (2 WTC). Only about 18 managed to escape in time from above the impact zone and out of the South Tower before it collapsed.

According to Associated Press, the city identified over 1,600 bodies but was unable to identify the rest of the bodies (about 1,100 people). They report that the city has "about 10,000 unidentified bone and tissue fragments that cannot be matched to the list of the dead" (AP, 23 February 2005).

Responsibility

File:WTC1 on fire.jpg

The World Trade Center on fire.

File:CNN911scrn.jpg

CNN broadcast of September 11 destruction

File:Pentagonfireball.jpg

Security camera image of the moment that American Airlines Flight 77 hit The Pentagon

File:Pentagon after September 11, 2001, terrorist attack.jpg

Clouds of smoke billow out of the Pentagon.

File:WTCCollapse.JPG

Lower Manhattan as seen from New Jersey, shortly after the attacks

Photo of the impact crater left by the crash of United Airlines Flight 93 in Shanksville, PA (USGS)

Main article: Responsibility for the September 11, 2001 attacks

The militant Islamist group al-Qaeda, which had been accused of several previous attacks on American targets, was blamed for the attacks although its leader Osama bin Laden denied involvement and knowledge of the incidents. Osama bin Laden had earlier declared a holy war against the United States. Shortly after the attacks, the United States government declared al-Qaeda and bin Laden the prime suspects.

The first public response from Osama bin Laden was read on September 16, 2001. He stated, "I stress that I have not carried out this act, which appears to have been carried out by individuals with their own motivation," which was broadcast by Qatar's Al-Jazeera satellite channel. ([3], [4], [5]). This denial was broadcast on U.S. news networks and worldwide. The second public response was read on September 28 by Daily Ummat a Pakistani newspaper. He stated "I have already said that I am not involved in the 11 September attacks in the United States. As a Muslim, I try my best to avoid telling a lie. I had no knowledge of these attacks, nor do I consider the killing of innocent women, children and other humans as an appreciable act. Islam strictly forbids causing harm to innocent women, children and other people. Such a practice is forbidden even in the course of a battle. " [6].

According to U.S. military sources, in November 2001 U.S. forces recovered a videotape from a destroyed house in Jalalabad, Afghanistan which showed Osama bin Laden talking to Khaled al-Harbi. In the tape, Osama seems to admit planning the attacks, though the translation provided some dispute [7]. The tape was broadcast on various news networks in December 2001.

The National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, known as the 9-11 Commission, released its report on July 22, 2004, concluding that the attacks were conceived and implemented by al-Qaeda operatives. The Commission stated that "9/11 plotters eventually spent somewhere between $400,000 and $500,000 to plan and conduct their attack", but that the specific origin of the funds used to execute the attacks remained unknown. To date, no convictions have been made in association with the attacks.

Civil engineers and the official report concluded that the collapse of 1 and 2 WTC occurred because of the following series of events: the impact of the aircraft both damaged a large number of the external structural supports of the building, and dislocated fireproofing from a large numbers of others. The explosion of the aircraft and the fuel ignited the contents of the floors around impact. This began compromising individual support structures. When enough had failed, this began a chain reaction where the buildings "pancaked" downward, each floor destroying the support of the floor below it.

Intuitively many people think that the buildings should have "tipped over". This misapprehension has caused a great deal of speculation that some form of controlled demolition would have been required. Instead, for very tall buildings the reverse is true: before the building could "tip" over, enough structural supports would have to be separated to cause floors to fall downwards. This was seen as parts of the outside of the towers did indeed fall laterally, peeling away from the rest of the structure. [8]

The conclusion drawn is that the buckling of the horizontal steel supports separated them from the vertical supports. The horizontal steel floors were supported by trusses which were unadequately fireproofed and hence the steel supports softened when exposed to fire and failed. This failure caused the floor to fall downwards. When a floor failed completely, this set off a chain reaction where the floor fell, sheared away the floor below it, and then the combined mass fails even more quickly. This process was considerably slower than the terminal velocity of the rubble alone, but faster than the terminal velocity of relatively small objects that people are generally familiar with, which have much higher surface area to volume ratios, and are generally less dense.

In short, two important intuitive notions on how things fall - that objects are rigid enough to tip, and terminal velocity of objects, caused untrained observers to conclude that the way in which the towers fell resembled a process called "controlled demolition". This is because they fell straight down, at a slightly lower velocity than that of an object in free-fall, with each floor showing little resistance. Some who believe in a conspiracy theory about the attacks continue to press the "controlled demolition" claim.

Motive

It is widely believed that September 11th attacks were consistent with a campaign against the United States by Al-Qaeda. Although the groups involvement in the American embassies in Kenya and Tanzania has never been proved. Al-Qaeda had declared responsibility for the USS Cole in Yemen.

A 1998 fatwa [9] reputed to have been issued by Bin Laden, Ayman al-Zawahiri, Abu-Yasir Rifa'i Ahmad Taha, Shaykh Mir Hamzah, and Fazlur Rahman alleges several motivations for the holy war. Specifically, they contend the United States:

• Plunders the resources of the Arabian Peninsula.
• Dictates policy to the rulers of those countries.
• Supports dictatorial regimes and monarchies in the Middle East, thereby oppressing their people.
• Has military bases and installations upon the Arabian Peninsula in order to threaten neighbouring Muslim countries.
• Intends thereby to create disunion between Muslim states, thus weakening them as a political force.
• Supports Israel, and wishes to divert international attention from (and tacitly maintain) the occupation of Palestine.

The Gulf War and the ensuing sanctions against and bombing of Iraq by the United States, were cited, in 1998, as further proof of these allegations. To the disapproval of moderate Muslims, the fatwa uses Islamic texts to justify violent action against American military and citizenry until the listed grievances are reversed. The 9/11 attacks was held as one such action.

In 2004 video, appearing to reverse his denial and acknowledging responsibility for the attacks, Bin Laden claims that the motivation for 9/11 included the wish to "restore freedom to our nation"; to "punish the aggressor in kind", and create economic damage to America - declaring a continuing aim of his holy war was "bleeding America to the point of bankruptcy". [10]

The Bush administration claimed that Al-Qaeda was motivated by hatred of the freedom and democracy exemplified by the United States. Both sides present the holy war as a battle between Goodness and Evil. Others have pointed to Al-Qaeda's comments and methods to contend that Al-Qaeda's motivation is to impose a tyrannical World Order based on the organization's interpretation of Islam.

A minority reject the determination that Al-Qaeda was responsible for the attacks; often citing the CIA or Mossad or pro-Zionists elements as perpetrators. Others, while accepting Al-Qaeda's culpability, allege that members of the American government withheld foreknowledge of the attacks, silently sanctioning them. In both cases, the suggested motivation was to create a pretext for an American military expansion in the Middle East; ultimately to further the realization of those US aims alleged above. (Main article: 9/11 conspiracy theories.)

A solitary fire fighter stands amidst the rubble and smoke in New York City. Days after the Sept. 11 attack, fires still burned at the site of the World Trade Center.

Aftermath

Main article: Aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks

File:Honoluluadvertiser11september2001.jpg

The Honolulu Advertiser was mindful of the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 in its headline.

View of the WTC and the Statue of Liberty.

International reaction

The attacks had major world-wide political effects. They were denounced world-wide and approximately one month after the attacks the USA led a wide coalition of international forces into Afghanistan in pursuit of al-Qaeda forces. Pakistan moved decisively to ally itself with the United States in its war against Osama bin Laden and Al-Qaeda. It gave the U.S. a number of military airports and bases for its attack on Afghanistan. It arrested over six hundred supposed Al-Qaeda members and handed them over to the U.S.[11]

Many countries introduced tough anti-terrorism legislation and took action to cut off terrorist finances, including the freezing of bank accounts suspected of being used to fund terrorism. Law enforcement and intelligence agencies stepped up cooperation to arrest terrorist suspects and break up suspected terrorist cells around the world. This process was highly controversial, as self-imposed restrictions (the restrictions of COINTELPRO, blocking the monitoring of public meetings are one example) on government authority were lifted and certain civil rights protections were perceived to be violated. The controversy was highlighted in September 2004 when Yusuf Islam, a leading British Muslim noted for his peaceful charitable work and previously known as the singer Cat Stevens, was barred from entering the U.S. and was subsequently returned to the UK after his flight was briefly diverted to Maine. Yusuf Islam's expulsion led to a complaint from British foreign secretary, Jack Straw to the U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell, who ordered a review of restrictions placed on people entering the United States.

Public response in the United States

The attacks also had immediate and overwhelming effects upon the United States population. Gratitude toward uniformed public-safety workers, and especially toward firefighters, was widely expressed in light of both the drama of the risks taken on the scene and the high death toll among the workers. The number of casualties among the emergency service personnel was unprecedented. The highly visible role played by Rudolph Giuliani, then Mayor of New York City, won him high praise nationally. He was named Person of the Year by Time magazine for 2001, and at times has had a higher profile in the U.S. than President George W. Bush.

There were several widespread public reactions in the U.S. to the attacks. One was a surge in patriotism and flag-waving not seen since World War II. There was also an unprecedented level of respect, sympathy, and admiration for New York City and New Yorkers as a group by Americans from other parts of the U.S. Some criticized this particular reaction, noting that not everyone who died was from New York (for example, some of the passengers on the planes). However, New York City clearly bore the brunt of the attacks --- and for years to come will still bear physical scars from the events of the day. Blood donations saw a surge in the weeks after 9/11. According to a report by the Journal of the American Medical Association released on May 7, 2003: "...the number of blood donations in the weeks after the September 11, 2001 attacks was markedly greater than in the corresponding weeks of 2000 (2.5 times greater in the first week after the attacks; 1.3–1.4 times greater in the second to fourth weeks after the attack)."[12]

There were some incidents of harrasment and hate crimes against Middle Easterners and other "Middle Eastern looking" people, particularly Sikhs. Balbir Singh Sodhi, one of the first victims of this backlash, was shot dead on September 15.

Economic aftermath

The attacks had significant economic repercussions for the United States and world markets. The New York Stock Exchange, the American Stock Exchange and NASDAQ did not open on September 11 and remained closed until September 17. New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) facilities and remote data processing sites were not damaged by the attack, but member firms, customers and markets were unable to communicate due to major damage to the telephone exchange facility near the World Trade Center. When the stock markets reopened on September 17, 2001, after the longest closure since the Great Depression in 1929, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (“DJIA”) stock market index fell 684 points, or 7.1%, to 8920, its biggest-ever one-day point decline. By the end of the week, the DJIA had fallen 1369.7 points (14.3%), its largest one-week point drop in history. U.S. stocks lost $1.2 trillion in value for the week. As of 2005 the streets surrounding the Stock Exchange on Wall Street are still barricaded and heavily guarded to prevent a physical attack upon the building.

North American air space was closed for several days after the attacks and air travel decreased significantly upon its reopening. As of 2005, the U.S. airline industry has not fully recovered, and only a handful of American airline corporations are performing well.

All towers in the United States were evacuated during the aftermath of the attacks, including Los Angeles, where traffic was at its lowest volume ever for that city, and the major downtown business district was virtually deserted as most businesses were closed.

Rescue, recovery, and compensation

Main article: Rescue and recovery effort after the September 11, 2001 attacks

Main article: Financial assistance following the September 11, 2001 attacks

Rescue and recovery efforts took months to complete. It took several weeks to simply put out the fires burning in the rubble of the WTC, and the clean-up was not completed until May 2002. Many relief funds were immediately set up to assist victims of the attacks. The task of providing financial assistance to the survivors and the families of victims is still ongoing.

Potential health effects

There is scientific speculation that exposure to various toxic products and the pollutant air surrounding the Towers after the WTC collapse may have negative effects on fetal development. Due to this potential harm, a notable children's environmental health center is currently analyzing the children whose mothers were pregnant during the WTC collapse, and were living or working near the World Trade Center towers. The staff of this study assess the children using psychological testing every year and interviews the mothers every six months. The purpose of the study is to determine whether there is significant difference in development and health progression of children whose mothers were exposed versus those who were not exposed after the WTC collapse.

Collapse of the World Trade Center

Main article: Collapse of the World Trade Center

File:WTC-remnant.jpg

September 13, 2001: A New York City firefighter looks up at what remains of the South Tower.

File:WTC-surroundings.jpg

Buildings surrounding the World Trade Center were heavily damaged by the debris and massive force of the falling twin towers.

File:WTC7-B4-Colaps.gif

Collapse of building WTC_7.

There has been much speculation on the "performance" of the Twin Towers after the impacts, and the reasons for the collapse are under active debate by structural engineers, architects and the relevant U.S. government agencies. The design of the WTC included many basic innovations distinguishing it from all previous skyscrapers and from many built since. Although the kinetic energy of the jetliner impacts and the resulting fires were unprecedented in the history of building disasters, some engineers strongly believe skyscrapers of more traditional design (such as New York City's Empire State Building and Malaysia's Petronas Towers) would have fared much better under the circumstances, perhaps standing indefinitely. If they are correct, supertall buildings that share the WTC's major design elements (for example, Chicago's Sears Tower and John Hancock Center) could be considered particularly vulnerable.

7 World Trade Center collapsed in the late afternoon of September 11. For details on its collapse see: Destruction of 7 World Trade Center.

A federal technical building and fire safety investigation of the collapses of the Twin Towers and 7 WTC has been conducted by the United States Department of Commerce's National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). The goals of this investigation — completed on April 6, 2005 — were to investigate the building construction, the materials used, and the technical conditions that contributed to the outcome of the WTC disaster. The investigation [13] was to serve as the basis for:

• Improvements in the way buildings are designed, constructed, maintained, and used
• Improved tools and guidance for industry and safety officials
• Revisions to building and fire codes, standards, and practices
• Improved public safety

The report concludes that the fireproofing on the Twin Towers' steel infrastructures was blown off by the initial impact of the planes and that if this had not occurred the WTC would likely have remained standing. In addition, the report asserts that the Towers' stairwells were not adequately reinforced to provide emergency escape for people above the impact zones.

Survivors

Further information: Survivors of the September 11, 2001 attacks

Congressional inquiries

Further information: 9/11 Commission Report

Speculation and claims of further conspiracies

Main article: 9/11 conspiracy theories

Since the attacks, there has been much speculation concerning their planning and execution. A Zogby International Poll published August 30, 2004 reported that half (49.3%) of New York City residents and 41% of New York citizens overall believe that some U.S. leaders "knew in advance that attacks were planned on or around September 11, 2001, and that they consciously failed to act." There are stories of phone call warnings, even weeks in advance that went unheeded. Some theories include the President's behavior during the event as evidence. Others say the damage at the Pentagon and WTC does not correspond to the official narrative. Some skeptics have formed a "9/11 Truth Movement."

20th hijacker

Twenty-seven members of al-Qaeda attempted to enter the United States to take part in the September 11 attacks. In the end, only nineteen participated. Other would-be hijackers are often referred to as the 20th hijackers.

Ramzi Binalshibh meant to take part in the attacks, but he was repeatedly denied a visa for entry into the U.S. Mohamed al-Kahtani, a Saudi Arabian citizen, may also have been planning to join the hijackers but U.S. Immigration authorities at Orlando International Airport refused his entry into the U.S. in August 2001. He was later captured in Afghanistan and imprisoned at the U.S. military prison known as Camp X-Ray at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Zacarias Moussaoui was reportedly considered as a replacement for Ziad Jarrah, who at one point threatened to withdraw from the scheme because of tensions amongst the plotters. Plans to include Moussaoui were never completed because the al-Qaeda hierarchy had doubts about his reliability. However, in April 2005, Moussaoui pled guilty to involvement in the hijacking and al-Qaeda, a plea which made him eligible for the death penalty. He has yet to be sentenced.

Other al-Qaeda members who may have attempted, but were unable, to take part in the attacks include Saeed al-Ghamdi (not to be confused with the successful hijacker of the same name), Mushabib al-Hamlan, Zakariyah Essabar, Ali Abdul Aziz Ali, and Tawfiq bin Attash. According to the 9/11 Commission Report, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the attack's mastermind, wanted to remove at least one member — Khalid al-Mihdhar — from the operation, but he was overruled by Osama bin Laden.

Other attacks

According to Mohammed Afroze, a planned simultaneous attack in London, on the House of Commons and Tower Bridge, was aborted at the last minute, when the would-be hijackers, waiting to board the planes they were to hijack, saw the damage in the USA, panicked and fled. Similar attacks may also have been planned in New Delhi and Melbourne.

See also

Aerial view of the World Trade Center site after the attacks.

• 9/11 conspiracy theories
• 7 World Trade Center
• 9/11 Commission Report
• 9/11 (film)
• Civil Air Patrol
• Collapse of the World Trade Center
• Freedom Tower
• Twin Towers 2
• List of accidents and incidents on commercial airliners
• List of historical events by death count
• National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States
• Thomas Kean, chairman of the 9/11 Commission
• Osama bin Laden's Declaration of War
• Osama tapes
• Project Bojinka
• Scott Fry, author of Joint Chiefs of Staff 'Instruction' altering hijack intercept protocol
• September 11, researchers
• Stanley Hilton
• Steven Emerson
• The New Jackals

Victims

• One World Trade Center tenants
• Two World Trade Center tenants

References

• 9-11Commission.gov - 'National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States' (9/11 Commission official homepage)
• "9-11Commission.gov - 'The 9-11 Commission Report: The National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States' (official commission report, 22 July 2004)
• ABCNews.go.com - 'Forensics at New York's Ground Zero ends' ABC News (23 February 2005)
• Aljazeera.net - Full transcript of bin Ladin's speech (1 November 2004)
• Vivisimo.com - 'Search the final report of the 9/11 Commission'
• GPOAccess.gov - 'The 9-11 Commission Report: Final Report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (official government edition)

External links

• 9-11Heroes.us - '9-11 Heroes: Four years after: We remember the events and victims of September 11 2001: In Memory to all those who gave their lives on 9-11-2001'
• BBC.co.uk - 'America's Day of Terror: On 11 September 2001 a series of attacks were launched on America: It was a day that many around the world would never forget' (special 9/11 report compilation), British Broadcasting Corporation (11 September 2002)
• CBSNews.com - 'New WTC Death Toll Is 2,752' (AP, 30 October 2003)
• Pictures 9 11, New York City
• CNN.com - '9/11 Timeline'
• MAHOPA.de - 'The world after September 11'
• NY1.com - 'World Trade Center Special Section', New York One News Television (June 7 2005)
• WashingtonPost.com - 'Terrorists Unleash Assault on US', Washington Post
• RealOpinion.com - A chronology of related events leading up to 9/11 since 1974.
• September 11, 2001, Documentary Project from The Library of Congress
• 9-11 Quotations
• Professional architect's comments on the WTC collapse from Cryptome
• detailed description of the collision with Pentagon, from abovetopsecret.com
• Pentagon collision whitepaper, from Purdue University

Manhattan from Jersey City on the 2004 memorial of the September 11 attacks.

Video

• AirDisaster.com - video of the World Trade Center crashes
• 9/11 Timeline - Chronology of events according to 9/11 Commission Report presented in 4-way split screen.
• CNN.com - First plane hits World Trade Center
• CNN.com - Second plane hits World Trade Center
• CNN.com - Exclusive video of plane crashing into WTC
• CNN.com - Video shows second WTC attack
• CTData.com - 'Naudet Documentary "9|11" to be Released on DVD and VHS on September 10' (documentary of Naudet brothers following firefighters during the event)
• Pentagon impact simulation from Purdue University (47 megabyte MPEG file)

Photos

• World Trade Center Photos by Robert Swanson
• 911DigitalArchive.org - 'The September 11 Digital Archive' (in partnership with the Library of Congress)
• InteractivePublishing.net - Media Sites on September 11
• Time.com - 'Shattered: a remarkable collection photographs', James Nachtwey

Books

• CSMonitor.com - 'September 11 One Year Later: A Monitor Guide to Books of September 11: A year after the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, the publishing industry has produced more than 300 related books', Christian Science Monitor
• Dwyer, Jim and Flynn, Kevin (2005). 102 Minutes: The Untold Story of the Fight to Survive Inside the Twin Towers. New York, NY: Times Books.
• September11News.com - 'Historical 9-11-01 Books'
• 9/11 Bookshelf lists alternative books on 9/11
• The 9/11 Commission Report: Final Report of the National Commission on Terrorist Acts Upon The United States (2004)

Victims and damage

• CNN.com - List of Victims
• CNN.com - In-Depth Specials - Damage report from the city of New York
• NewYorkMetro.com - 9/11 by the Numbers: Death, destruction, charity, salvation, war, money, real estate, spouses, babies, and other September 11 statistics', New York Times

Further reading

• DMOZ.org - 'September 11, 2001', Open Directory Project (directory category)
• LookSmart.com - 'September 11 Attacks' (directory category)
• Yahoo.com - 'September 11th Attacks' (directory category)
• www.Public-Action.com - 'Bin Laden: Authentic Interview' (directory category)
• ClubIvy's 9/11 Truth Page