‘A New Day of Infamy’
Day
1 (September 11th, 2001)
Not
since Pearl Harbor have Americans experienced a direct act of war
against our nation. This morning, in a series of horrific events,
2 American Airlines jets and 2 United Airlines jets were hijacked
by terrorists believed to be commanded by Anti-American leader Osama
Bin Laden and possibly aided by various Middle Eastern nations.
At about 8:46am
the first strike came by American Airlines Flight # 11 as it pierced
the first World Trade Center towers. The second strike was followed
at about 9:09 as United Airlines #175 slammed into the South tower
of the WTC. Both planes were bound for Los Angeles from Boston,
filled to capacity with fuel. Both Trade Center towers, contained
close to 50,000 people. Dozens of people jumped to there deaths
from the buildings, unable to stand the blazing flames. One after
the other they fell. The heat and force was so powerful it melted
mail trucks and emergency vehicles at the base of the destruction.
Soon after,
another kamikaze-like attack hit the Pentagon which smoldered on
fire for hours. A fourth jet bound for San Francisco out of Newark
was believed to be headed for Camp David, but never made it. A phone
call was received from a man on the plane who had barricaded himself
in the bathroom in order to warn authorities. A few moments later
the plane crashed in Pennsylvania.
Within minutes
after these events all airplanes were commanded to be grounded by
the FAA and all international flights to be directed to Canada.
The country is on Delta alert, the highest state of alert our country
has. The borders are closed and the country sits in a stance for
war. Mayor Giuliani from ground zero had this to say: "The
city of New York and the United States of America is much stronger
than any group of barbaric terrorists –that our Democracy, that
our rule of law, that our strength, and our willingness to defend
ourselves will ultimately prevail." Many government officials,
including Governor Davis of California, declare these attacks as
"an act of war."
President Bush
at the time of the attacks was talking to children in Florida about
education and spoke briefly about the attacks. Soon he would be
flying to a secure location in Shreveport, Louisiana flanked by
U.S. fighter jets. From here he made his 2nd statement condemning
the attacks. Finally from the Oval Office, the President stood firm:
"for those who are behind these evil acts… We will make no
distinction between the terrorists who committed these acts and
those who harbor them… we stand together to win the war against
terrorism."
International
response has been severe condemnation of the attacks and strong
support of the U.S. British Prime Minister Tony Blair. offered his
"deepest condolences to the American people" saying ‘we
have to come together to eradicate the evil completely from our
world.’ The state of Israel declared a day of mourning for those
who lost their lives.
Unusually
these attacks come at the anniversary of the the Camp David Peace
Accords of 1978. The official Arab response is the denial of any
responsibility, however many are celebrating in the Middle East
at this American tragedy, with dancing, shouts of joy and the distributing
of celebratory candy to children.
The Boston Herald
Reports that law enforcement officials in Massachusetts identified
at least five Arab men as suspects; their passports were from the
United Arab Emirates. At the Logan International Airport they found
a car that contained Arabic-language flight training manuals. 1
of the suspects is known to be a trained pilot. The Herald paints
a horrific scene of one air siege, where flight attendants were
murdered with razor-edged tooth brushes in order to lure the captain
out of the cabin.
Rescuers are
working through the night, pulling survivors out of the rubble and
transferring them to hospitals. As of 5:00a.m. on September 12 a
firefighter, a woman, and two police officers have been saved. Many
people who are still buried have been able to contact rescue teams
with their cells phones and are awaiting help. News anchors, such
as Dan Rather, call this the "21st Century Pearl Harbor"
and Chuck Hagel, Senator of Nebraska said, "these attacks will
be awakening the sleeping giant". The country waits as the
president decides how we should respond.
Photo Credit:
WirePix & AP |