“Gone but never forgotten. We honor victims & heroes, many Italians. Lost their lives to save others” at Ground Zero and in Afghanistan. These were the words of Minister in a tweet to mark the 11th anniversary of the attacks on the Twin Towers.
In a simple and sober ceremony, the most serious attack ever to strike the United States is being commemorated in the tradition of the first nine years, after the major ceremony that marked the 10th anniversary. Ground Zero, in New York, will see the heartbreaking recital of the names of the nearly 3000 victims of that day of insanity. Not just the deaths caused by the two planes that struck the World Trade Centre in Manhattan, but the victims of the attack on the Pentagon and the passengers of the plane that crashed in Pennsylvania before it could reach Capitol Hill, the home of the American Congress, or the White House, in Washington.
“Our country is stronger”, says Obama
The commemoration is intended as an intimate occasion for the families of the victims. This year, the victims of the attack on the World Trade Centre in 1993 – the first attack against the financial heart of America – will also be commemorated. In the 1993 attack, 6 people lost their lives and over 1000 were injured. In his weekly address to the American people, President Obama remembered that 11 September of 11 years ago. And he added that “Today, a new tower rises above the New York skyline. And our country is stronger, safer and more respected in the world”.