Obama: ‘Our Hearts Still Ache’ For 9/11 Victims

@AFP

WASHINGTON (AFP) – President Barack Obama on Wednesday mourned the lives lost 12 years ago in the September 11, 2001 attacks, saying “our hearts still ache” for the nearly 3,000 people killed.

Against the backdrop of possible U.S. military action against Syria, Obama marked the 12th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks first at the White House, and then at a solemn Pentagon ceremony attended by families of 9/11 victims and senior officers.

“We pray for the memory of all those taken from us — nearly 3,000 innocent souls,” Obama said.

“Our hearts still ache for the futures snatched away, the lives that might have been,” he said.

“They left this Earth. They slipped from our grasp.”

Quoting the Bible, Obama spoke of “the miracle of restoration,” paying tribute to the resilient spirit of victims’ families, saying he was “amazed at the will that you’ve summoned in your lives to lift yourselves up and to carry on.”

American troops invaded Afghanistan shortly after the 9/11 attacks to oust the Taliban for giving refuge to Al-Qaeda, and Obama gave thanks to the American forces who served there — but said the war was now coming to a close.

He said the country would remain vigilant in the face of future terror threats but said military might alone could not bring peace and security.

“Let us have the wisdom to know that while force is at times necessary, force alone cannot build the world we seek,” he said.

Nearly 3,000 people were killed in the 2001 attacks in New York, Washington and Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

At the Pentagon, 184 died when a hijacked airliner struck the building.

Advertising

Start your day with National Memo Newsletter

Know first.

The opinions that matter. Delivered to your inbox every morning

American History Proves We Can Still Save Democracy From Trumpism

The Lincoln Memorial

Have you ever thought about the role guilt has played in our national life? It’s not omnipresent, it’s certainly not felt by everyone, most especially those sinned against, but I would say guilt rivals pride as the thing that has most motivated us. Think about it for a moment. The founding of this country wasn’t an immaculate birth – for one thing, there wasn’t a Founding Mother among all those long-heralded Founding Fathers, and one of the two greatest mistakes they made the day they came to an agreement on our founding document was what they left out. They didn’t award women full citizenship, and they failed to deal in any way with the sin of slavery.

Keep reading...Show less
How Fox Props Up The House Republicans' Impeachment Farce

Sean Hannity

Fox News propagandists are still eagerly shoveling Rep. James Comer’s (R-KY) slop to their viewers, nearly one year into the House Oversight Committee chair’s shambolic campaign to damage President Joe Biden’s political standing by focusing on his son Hunter Biden’s business dealings.

Keep reading...Show less
{{ post.roar_specific_data.api_data.analytics }}