The world will never forget the date: 11 September 2001. Millions recoiled in horror as they watched events unfold on their television screens.
Live video feeds showed commercial aircraft slamming into the Twin Towers. At first, people thought it was an accident – that a small plane had hit the tower. But it was not.
Nineteen al-Qaeda terrorists had ‘trained’ to fly planes by using computer simulators. They seized control of four passenger jets, two of which they planned to crash into the World Trade Center. Another was to be crashed into the Pentagon and another into Capitol Hill. Three made it to their target, but the brave passengers on United Airlines Flight 175 managed to thwart the attack on Washington.
Nearly 3,000 people died – including 246 people aboard the planes and many firemen and police officers who gave up their lives in trying to save others. The footage was chilling. Who could possibly forget the image of the man who dived to his death, briefcase in hand, preferring the quick release of a massive fall, rather than being burnt in the inferno that was spreading through the Twin Towers.
Who can forget the ghosts who emerged from the dust and debris cloud as the towers came crashing down. Who can forget the shock, horror and ensuing changes that affected all our lives.
In 2004, al-Qaeda claimed responsibility and it led to the US and UK’s war on terror. The conflict started in Afghanistan in 2001, and it indirectly led to the invasion of Iraq in 2004. Bush and Blair pledged to rid the world of terrorists. But al-Qaeda’s operations grew. There was London’s 7-7, the attacks in Spain, Yemen, Bali and many more.
The risk of terror attacks is now permanently with us. It could come at any time and in any place. We deal with it when we board planes, trains, public transport. We expose ourselves to it when we travel, for work or pleasure. We could even be targets ourselves – as a country. It is just something that has become a permanent fixture in our collective mindset. This era is the era of terrorism, where fanatics can strike at any given moment.
Fundamentalism in all its forms is wrong. Islamist fundamentalism is wrong. Christian fundamentalism is wrong. But more than anything, fundamentalism in itself is wrong. Just look what Anders Breivik did in Norway. His fanatical ideas led to the killing of 77 people.
The war on terror can never be won. There are always going to be crazy people with crazy ideas. Some might think they are fighting for an ideal, a cause. But killing innocent people is never acceptable. It is all too easy to forget those who died in the attacks. It is also easy to forget the innocent people who have been killed in the ensuing war on terror. It is all too easy to just simply forget.