America marks six years since 9/11 under shadow of ‘war on terror’

UNITED STATES: America marks the sixth anniversary of the September 11 attacks on Tuesday with more low key commemorations than in the past and in the face of mounting concern over the US-led “war on terror.”

In New York, where more than 2,700 people were killed when two hijacked planes plowed into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center, rescue workers were to read out the names of the dead in a solemn ceremony on Tuesday.

As in previous years, Al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden released a taped message ahead of the commemorations, mocking the United States as “weak” and threatening to escalate the increasingly unpopular war in Iraq.

Unlike past commemorations, most of Tuesday’s ceremony will be held at a park near Ground Zero, the area where the Twin Towers once stood, and not in the site itself, where work is under way on new skyscrapers and a memorial.

In what has become an annual ritual, the reading of the names will pause for four moments of silence to mark the exact times that the planes hit the towers and when the massive office blocks collapsed.

Church bells are to toll at 8:46 am (1246 GMT) to mark the exact moment that the first plane, American Airlines Flight 11, crashed into the North Tower.

Relatives of those killed will then be able to descend a long ramp into the World Trade Center site to lay flowers and pause momentarily.

The ceremony is a lower profile event than the commemorations last year to mark the fifth anniversary of the attacks, when President George W. Bush laid a wreath at the site and later made a televised address to the nation.

Bush, who this year called for Americans to mark the attacks with memorial services and candlelight vigils, was to attend a remembrance service in Washington and later observe a moment of silence at the White House.

“The main problem is to fight extremism, to recognize that history has called us into action,” Bush said last month, maintaining a line he has held since the attacks.

“By fighting extremists and radicals, we help people realize dreams. And helping people realize dreams helps promote peace,” he added.

At Ground Zero, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is to lead the ceremony, at which his predecessor, Republican presidential hopeful Rudolph Giuliani, will also deliver a reading.

Democratic presidential frontrunner Hillary Clinton, a New York senator, is also due to take part in the ceremony, at which she will help read the names of the dead.

In the evening, a “Tribute in Light” is to project two massive beams of light into the night sky above Ground Zero to symbolize the collapsed towers.

In Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where hijackers brought down United Airlines Flight 93 in a remote field, tributes were to be held Tuesday to honor the 40 passengers and crew killed.

In Washington, where 184 people were killed when American Airlines Flight 77 flew into the Pentagon, the Defense Department was organizing a Freedom Walk on Sunday to honor the dead and show support for US troops serving abroad.

.Meanwhile A memorial complex known as “Reflecting Absence” is due to open in 2009 featuring two square voids in the footprint of the original Twin Towers.

The largest part of the reconstruction plan being overseen by architect Daniel Libeskind is the Freedom Tower, due to be completed in early 2011. Construction on the skyscraper began last year after a series of delays.

But perhaps the most troubling legacy of the attacks for New Yorkers is the health of the rescue and recovery workers, who six years on are suffering high rates of respiratory complaints and post traumatic stress disorder.

New York, Sunday, AFP