US marks 25 years since 9/11 attacks with ceremonies across three sites
Commemorations in New York, at the Pentagon and in Pennsylvania honoured nearly 3,000 people killed in the 2001 attacks.
The United States has marked the 25th anniversary of the 11 September 2001 attacks with ceremonies at the World Trade Centre site in New York, the Pentagon and the Flight 93 memorial in Pennsylvania.
President Donald Trump led the Pentagon ceremony, while Vice-President JD Vance attended the New York memorial alongside former presidents George W Bush, Joe Biden, Barack Obama and Bill Clinton, and the living former first ladies.
Bells and moments of silence marked the timing of the attacks and the collapse of the World Trade Centre towers. The names of nearly 3,000 victims were read in Manhattan, while two beams of light formed the annual Tribute in Light.
A seventh bell was rung for people who later died from illnesses linked to dust and smoke from the attacks. US health officials say those diseases, including cancer, have caused more than three times the number of deaths recorded on 11 September 2001.
The ceremonies also renewed unresolved questions about accountability. Terry Strada, national chairperson of 9/11 Families United, criticised Saudi Arabia and what she described as failures by US officials to hold the kingdom accountable. Saudi officials have denied involvement, while the 9/11 Commission found no evidence that the Saudi government or senior Saudi officials funded al-Qaeda.
The attacks involved four planes hijacked by al-Qaeda militants. Two struck the World Trade Centre, one hit the Pentagon and a fourth crashed in Pennsylvania after passengers resisted. Commemorations were also held in London, Canada and Italy, the BBC reported.
