TODAY marks the 12th anniversary of one of the darkest days in modern history,
as it was on September 11, 2001 that 19 militants associated with the Islamic extremist group al-Qaeda hijacked four airliners and carried out suicide attacks against targets in the United States.
Two of the planes were flown into the towers of the World Trade Centre in New York City, a third plane hit the Pentagon just outside Washington, D.C., and the fourth plane crashed in a field in Pennsylvania. Often referred to as 9/11, the attacks resulted in extensive death and destruction, triggering major US initiatives to combat terrorism and defining the presidency of George W. Bush.
Over 3,000 people were killed during the attacks in New York City and Washington, D.C., including more than 400 police officers and fire fighters.
As millions watched the events unfolding in New York, American Airlines Flight 77 circled over downtown Washington, D.C., and slammed into the west side of the Pentagon military headquarters at 9:45 a.m. Jet fuel from the Boeing 757 caused a devastating inferno that led to the structural collapse of a portion of the giant concrete building. All told, 125 military personnel and civilians were killed in the Pentagon, along with all 64 people aboard the airliner.
Less than 15 minutes after the terrorists struck the nerve centre of the US military, the horror in New York took a catastrophic turn for the worse when the south tower of the World Trade Centre collapsed in a massive cloud of dust and smoke.
This dastardly attack is the worst act of terrorism that occurred in the modern era and what could motivate human beings to destroy their fellow human beings in such a cruel and horrifying manner is still a question to be answered, albeit if it could ever be answered or explained.
Humans are considered to be above all other living beings because they have the power of reasoning and also possess intelligence but despite that, they have behaved in a savage manner throughout history.
For some mysterious reason(s), humans seem to be prone to settle disputes and other matters through the use of violence which has resulted in tremendous suffering through the loss of lives, limbs and property.
Violence has been used even under the name of religion, which is supposed to be the voice of peace, goodwill, harmony and understanding. However, the reality has been that many wars in different parts of the world have been fought in the name of religion. In fact, more lives have probably been lost in religious wars than in conventional ones during Mankind’s existence.
And despite the experiences of World Wars I and II, the Vietnam War and many different wars across the globe during different periods, and in more recent times wars in Afghanistan, Iraq and in the entire Middle East, we do not seem to understand that violence and wars do not bring solutions to problems. If anything at all, they create greater problems and of course immeasurable suffering. As one Russian World War II veteran General aptly puts it: “In wars there are no winners, only losers.”
The faster governments, leaders and people in general could grasp the essence of what that Russian General said, the faster the world would become a better place for all of us.
