JAKARTA - Today, exactly 19 years ago, the events of 11 September 2001 or 9/11 occurred and were unforgettable. One of the deadliest attacks on United States (US) soil since Japan bombed Pearl Harbor in World War II planted a bad memory. Since then, the US has changed.
It is reported that nearly 3,000 people died in the 9/11 attacks. The New York Times described the attack as "the worst and most daring terror attack in American history." The terrorists hijacked the planes and crashed the jets into the tower of the World Trade Center in New York.
Even the majestic and dashing Twin Towers were engulfed in a storm of ash, glass, smoke and leaping bodies, avoiding one death to another. Not only two planes in the WTC. The third jet crashes into the Pentagon in Virginia.
The attacks appeared to be carefully coordinated. All of the hijacked planes were on their way to California. The condition of the aircraft was filled with fuel with a departure distance of one hour and 40 minutes.
The first plane was American Airlines Flight 11. The Boeing 767 departed Boston for Los Angeles, crashing into the north tower at 8:48 a.m. local time. 18 minutes later, United Airlines Flight 175 from Boston to Los Angeles crashed into the south tower.
President George W. Bush addresses Congress. He filed a case for a new kind of military response; not an air strike targeted at a training facility or a weapons bunker, but a global and broad 'war on terror'.
"Our war on terror started with al Qaeda, but it doesn't end there," Bush said. "It will not end until every global terrorist group is found, stopped and defeated."
According to History, when US troops invaded Afghanistan less than a month after 9/11, they launched the longest continuous military campaign in US history. The fighting in Afghanistan has received support from the US people and support from NATO allies to dismantle al Qaeda, crush the Taliban and kill Osama bin Laden, the so-called mastermind of 9/11.
US support for the 'war on terror' campaign continued for many years. Recent operations have also targeted several terrorist cells around the world. Thousands of US soldiers died in the first two decades, with countless others returning home physically and psychologically injured. Yet the shadow of 9/11 is always there, keeping US troops afloat in Afghanistan and elsewhere for nearly 20 years.
Not only in terms of security. The events of 9/11 also completely changed US society. It is known, the most heartbreaking aspect of the 9/11 attacks was that 19 hijackers were able to take control of a commercial aircraft with weapons and be able to enter the cockpit.
Clearly, 9/11 was the failure of the intelligence apparatus to identify the attackers. 9/11 also meant the failure of the airport security system. Before 9/11, many people didn't have to have a ticket to get around the airport or wait at the gate. In fact, no one checks the identity of passengers before boarding the plane.
The only item people had to remove when going through security was change. Now strict checks are being carried out, starting from scanning bags and suitcases to checking identity with tickets.
Religious sentimentJust four days after 9/11, a gunman in Mesa, Arizona carried out the shooting. First, he shot and killed Balbir Singh Sodhi, the owner of a gas station with Indian descent. However, Sodhi is Sikh and wears a turban.
The gunman thought Sodhi was Muslim. Minutes later, the gunman shot another gas station officer of Lebanese descent. However, it missed. He then shot the Afghan-American family through the window.
Sentiment towards Muslims has plagued Americans so badly. Many people in the US and around the world still view the 9/11 attacks as Islamic acts. With that in mind they seek revenge on anyone who appears to be Muslim, even as politicians and law enforcers repeatedly claim that Islam is a religion of peace whose true teachings have been twisted by terrorist extremists.
In 2000, only 12 anti-Muslim attacks were reported to the FBI. In 2001, that number had jumped to 93. As civil liberties organizations criticized the TSA and its enforcement of the racial profile of Arab and Muslim men, hate crimes against Muslims continued.
According to statistics from the FBI, there were 91 reports of attacks with anti-Muslim motives in 2015. Then in 2016, the number of cases rose to 127, surpassing the number of attacks by anti-Muslims in 2001.
The 9/11 attacks also spawned an anti-Semitic movement, although not as massive as the anti-Muslim movement. Most of the attacks that took place stemmed from conspiracy theories that they believe were linked to 9/11.
In September 2019, a rock in the middle of the University of Tennessee-Knoxville painted with inspirational messages was covered with messages accusing Jews of being behind the 9/11 attacks. The graffiti painted in stone reads: The Jews did 9-11. Google: Dancing Israelis.
In August 2019, an unknown person distributed anti-Semitic leaflets saying that Jews and Israel were behind the 9/11 attacks. The leaflets were scattered in Novato, Northern California.
The flyer said that Israelis were seen dancing at the collapsed WTC Tower. A Jewish-Israeli man made billions in insurance money and that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the attack. At the bottom of the page it says, "Wake up, USA!"
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