September 11 Attacks: How the Memorial Ceremony Went and the First Declassified FBI Document

On the morning of September 11 in the US, a memorial ceremony was held for almost 3,000 people who died in the September 11 attacks 20 years ago. We tell you how the ceremony went and which document the FBI declassified.

US President Joe Biden and the first lady visited all the attack sites. In Manhattan, near the memorial to the victims of the attack, they were joined by former presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton.

At each of the moments 20 years ago when the planes hit the buildings, moments of silence were observed. The first was held at the National 9/11 Memorial at 8:46 a.m. Eastern Time, when the first hijacked plane crashed into the World Trade Center tower. Moments of silence were then observed at 9:03, 9:37 and 9:59.

Relatives of the victims read aloud the names of all the people who were killed in the attacks on the twin towers. In 2020, due to the coronavirus pandemic, the names were read through a loudspeaker from a pre-recorded message.

Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris also visited Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where the fourth hijacked plane (United Airlines Flight 93) crashed. It failed to reach its target in Washington thanks to the resistance of the people on board.

At the hour of their deaths, all 40 names of the passengers and crew members were read out. The ceremony opened with a memorial bell toll. Former president George W. Bush spoke at the event.

The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) declassified the first document from a series of materials on the September 11, 2001 attacks, following an order from US President Joe Biden.

The 16-page document is dated April 4, 2016, and the text is published with redactions. It contains a summary of an interview with a person who often communicated with citizens of Saudi Arabia in the US who supported the first participants of the attack. This interview was conducted in 2015.

Earlier, the Saudi Arabian embassy in the US welcomed the declassification of documents on the September 11 attacks, saying it would "once and for all put an end to unfounded accusations against the kingdom." The embassy called any claims of Saudi Arabia's involvement in the attacks "categorically false."

It is worth noting that 15 of the 19 terrorists who carried out the September 11, 2001 attacks were citizens of Saudi Arabia.