National security matters must unite, not divide us

On Tuesday, September 11, 2001, a horrified world watched in shock live images of the most daring and devastating terror assault in history, as al-Qaeda delivered a series of four deadly blows right at the heart of America, killing 3,000 people and causing at least $10 billion in property damage. Four passenger airliners were hijacked by 19 terrorists for suicide attacks. Two, American Airlines Flight 11 and United Airlines Flight 175, were crashed into the North and South towers of the World Trade Centre in New York City. Within two hours, both towers collapsed. A third plane, American Airlines Flight 77 was crashed into the Pentagon, home of the US Department of Defence, leaving it severely damaged as its western side partially collapsed. The fourth, United Airlines Flight 93, was targeted at Washington, DC, but crashed into a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, after its passengers took on the hijackers.

At 8.30pm, amid the chilling scenes, an emotional yet firmly defiant President George Walker Bush delivered the following address to a nation in shock: