Afghans remember 9/11 in America “too far” from their mind and country at that time
An American woman covered in dust from the collapse of the Twin Towers.
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Americans flee the scene.
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Bush and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld inspect the area behind the Pentagon.
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When planes hijacked by al-Qaeda hijacked the World Trade Center towers in New York and the Pentagon in Washington on September 11, 2001, Afghanistan was still traumatized by a tragedy inflicted on it by al-Qaeda itself.
Two days before those events, a group of the organization assassinated the hero of the resistance against the Soviet occupier in the eighties and then against the "Taliban", Ahmad Shah Massoud, in his stronghold in the Banshir Valley in northeastern Afghanistan.
While the Afghans were facing the loss of the leader Massoud, nicknamed "The Lion of Panshir," the events of the United States came to completely change the course of their country's history.
However, many of them did not immediately realize the significance of that pivotal moment.
"That evening, I listened to the newscast... it was talking about an attack on the United States," former civil servant Abdul Rahman, who was in his twenties at the time, told AFP.
"I did not pay attention to the issue, because the radio always talks about attacks and wars," he added.
A few days later, Afghans learned that al-Qaeda had orchestrated the attacks through its leader, Osama bin Laden, who was hiding in their country. The Americans blamed the Taliban movement, ruling since 1996, for harboring al-Qaeda. Abdul Rahman said, “It did not occur to me that the United States would respond by attacking Afghanistan. For me, America was very far away and that its occupation of our country was unacceptable.” The twin towers are on fire. "This was two days after the incident," he said, adding that the attacks had led to an "unacceptable occupation." In the face of the Taliban's refusal to hand over bin Laden, the United States invaded Afghanistan at the head of an international military coalition, and in a few weeks overthrew the Taliban regime. "They looked for an excuse to enter Afghanistan, that was an excuse to occupy this land," says Abdul Samad, denouncing it.
Qiyamat al-Din, the locksmith in Kandahar, believed that the American invasion would put an end to more than two decades of war, but his hopes were quickly disappointed. He recounts that at first, "people were optimistic and refugees from other countries such as Pakistan and Iran returned to their country, but they did not know that we would face more problems." He accused the United States and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) of "sowing chaos by coming here". After the overthrow of its regime, the Taliban turned into a fighting insurgency that multiplied the attacks against foreign and Afghan forces, causing thousands of Afghan civilian deaths. Qiyam al-Din believes that “it was all a trap.” As for the Americans, they were accused of not respecting the traditions and religion of Afghanistan, and of committing mistakes that claimed the lives of many civilians.
Noorallah, the teacher, recalls that he watched on television the scenes of the attacks in New York and Washington secretly in the basement of one of his neighbours.
Television was banned at that time, like all other forms of entertainment, as it was considered by the Taliban as a violation of Sharia.
He commented, "It looked horrific, they were showing the scenes of the two burning towers constantly."
After the overthrow of the Taliban, the country witnessed a brief period of calm and peace, but it did not last long as the Taliban moved to resist the foreign occupation of their country.
"When the Taliban left, people were happy, they could have been free again," says citizen Noorullah.
However, with the passage of time, the Americans began to realize that they "came to the wrong place," stressing, "as if this was a trap set for them."
After 20 years, the "Taliban" regained power in Afghanistan since mid-August. Noureddine believes he was "right", as "the same people, the same faces and the same behavior" came back.
acceleration of events
Milestones on the day that shook the world's premier superpower and changed the course of history, according to the Congressional Assault Inquiry Committee.
8:46 am
Boeing 767 American Airlines Flight 11, which took off from Boston to Los Angeles with 92 people on board - including the five hijackers - crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center, opening a huge hole in the upper floors that caught fire.
09:03
Boeing 767 United Airlines Flight 175, which took off from Boston to Los Angeles, with 65 people on board, including the five hijackers, crashed on the upper floors of the South Tower.
09:05
Sarasota, Florida: Then-President George W. Bush was reciting a story to elementary school children.
"A second plane crashed into the second tower, the United States is under attack," his office manager whispered in his ear.
09:25
The authorities of the Civil Aviation Authority, the Federal Aviation Administration, announced the closure of US airspace and the prohibition of any aircraft from taking off.
09:30
Bush says there is an "apparently a terrorist attack".
09:37
Boeing 757 "American Airlines" Flight 77, which took off from Washington - Dulles Airport, bound for San Francisco, with 64 people on board, including five hijackers, crashed on the West Front of the Pentagon.
09:42
The Federal Aviation Authority requires all aircraft to land at airports as soon as possible.
09:59
The South Tower of the World Trade Center collapsed into a huge mass of fire, steel, and dust.
The violence of the attack did not allow any trace of the DNA of hundreds of victims to be found.
10:03
Shanksville, Pennsylvania: United Airlines Flight 93 from Newark, New Jersey to San Francisco, carrying 44 people, including four hijackers, crashed in Shanksville, a wooded area of western Pennsylvania.
Some passengers, who reported via mobile phones what was happening in New York, confronted the hijackers who had taken control of the cockpit.
10:28
The North Tower of the World Trade Center collapsed 100 and two minutes after it was hit.
A cloud of ash and debris covered the southern part of Manhattan.
13:04
Louisiana (South): George W. Bush, who was evacuated to Barksdale Air Force Base, put the armed forces on "high alert" and vowed to "hunt down and punish the cowards responsible for the attacks."
Later, the president was transferred to Offset Air Force Base in Nebraska (center) before returning to the White House in the evening.
13:27
Washington: Mayor Anthony Williams declares a state of emergency in the federal capital.
20:30
George W. Bush addresses the Americans and condemns "deliberate terrorist acts."
He promises to track down those responsible, warning that Washington "will not distinguish" between terrorists and those harboring them.
• These attacks, the most tragic in history, killed 3,000 people, and were carried out by 19 members of "Al-Qaeda" who hijacked four planes.
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