The Deadliest Terrorist Attack of the 21st Century

On September 11, 2001, a terrorist attack in New York painted history's calendar black, turning the lives of thousands upside down. People all over the world turned their eyes to the television screens. There, two giant skyscrapers were reduced to rubble in just a few minutes, as if in a movie. However, these were the most real images—with the most real losses.

This attack would later be referred to as the deadliest of the 21st century. The terrorist act known as 9/11 was meticulously planned. Early in the morning, 19 hijackers from the terrorist group Al-Qaeda seized four commercial passenger planes in the sky. According to the plan, each of the planes was to head towards specific, targeted structures to cause as many casualties and financial losses as possible.

The hijacked American Airlines Boeing 767 changed its direction and at 08:46 crashed into the southern part of the World Trade Center. At the time of the impact, there were 81 passengers on board. Just a few minutes later, around 09:03, a second Boeing 767 from United Airlines carrying 56 passengers struck the second tower of the complex. Moments later, the 93 and 99 story buildings collapsed.

Meanwhile, the third United Airlines Boeing 757 was heading towards one of the nation's key structures, the Pentagon. While the world was still coming to grips with the first two attacks, news spread about the third terrorist assault.

The planned fourth attack did not succeed. It later became clear that after the hijacking, the passengers had attempted to wrest control back from the terrorists, thwarting their plans. However, the plane crashed in a field 200 kilometers from Washington, killing 37 passengers.

According to official data, the attack claimed the lives of 2,977 people, excluding the terrorists. 24 individuals went missing, and the victims included citizens from 91 countries around the world.

The largest number of casualties occurred in the northern section of the trade center. A massive fire broke out after the impact, making evacuation impossible. The fire, lasting more than 1.5 hours, resulted in 1,366 deaths. If the plane that struck the southern building had damaged only the upper part, in this case, the impact was directed almost to the center of the building. As a result, the upper part of the structure became detached from the foundation, eliminating the chance of rescuing those on the higher floors. The scale of the smoke also prevented any evacuation attempts from the rooftop.

Only a few individuals managed to escape from there. Notably, among the victims were rescuers, law enforcement officers, medical personnel, and individuals who were nearby at the time of the attack. During the operations to eliminate the aftermath of the attack, more than 400 people lost their lives.

In addition to human losses, the US incurred billions of dollars in economic losses. Following these events, US authorities initiated the most extensive investigation in the country's history.

The governments of the US and the UK announced that full responsibility for the attacks lay with the Al-Qaeda group led by Osama bin Laden. Today, a memorial stands at the site of the destroyed Twin Towers, engraved with the names of the victims. The memorial serves as a reminder that, unfortunately, such significant human losses can occur not only in battlefields but also in non-war zones, and it calls for action to prevent similar events in the future.