9/11 and the War on Terror

Introduction

On the morning of September 11, 2001, the world changed forever. On that day, 19 terrorists from the extremist group al-Qaeda hijacked four commercial airplanes in the United States. They crashed two of them into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City and a third into the Pentagon, the headquarters of the U.S. military, in Virginia. The fourth plane crashed in a field in Pennsylvania after passengers fought back against the hijackers. The 9/11 attacks were the deadliest terrorist attack in human history, killing nearly 3,000 people. In response, the United States, under President George W. Bush, declared a global "War on Terror," a conflict that would dominate international politics, reshape societies, and define the 21st century.

Learning objectives

After reading this article, you should be able to:

• Describe the events of September 11, 2001.
• Identify al-Qaeda and its leader, Osama bin Laden, as the perpetrators of the attacks.
• Define the "War on Terror" and its main objectives.
• Explain the significance of the U.S.-led invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq.
• Analyse the major consequences of the War on Terror, including its impact on civil liberties and global security.

The Attacks of September 11th

The attacks were meticulously planned and executed to cause maximum casualties and symbolic damage. The targets—the World Trade Center (a symbol of American economic power) and the Pentagon (a symbol of American military power)—were chosen deliberately. The collapse of the Twin Towers, broadcast live on television screens around the world, created images of devastation that were seared into the collective memory of a generation. The sense of shock, grief, and vulnerability was immense. For the first time since the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, the continental United States had suffered a major attack from a foreign enemy.

The Enemy: Al-Qaeda

The U.S. government quickly identified the perpetrator as al-Qaeda, a militant Islamist terrorist network. Al-Qaeda ("The Base" in Arabic) was led by a wealthy Saudi Arabian named Osama bin Laden. The group's ideology was rooted in a radical and distorted interpretation of Islam, which called for a global holy war, or jihad, against the West, particularly the United States. Bin Laden was motivated by several grievances, including the presence of U.S. troops in Saudi Arabia (the location of Islam's holiest sites), U.S. support for Israel, and U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East. Al-Qaeda operated from a safe haven in Afghanistan, where they were protected by the ruling Islamist regime, the Taliban.

The Declaration of the "War on Terror"

In the days following the attacks, President George W. Bush declared a "War on Terror." This was not a traditional war against a specific country, but a global campaign against terrorist organisations and the states that harboured them. Bush famously stated, "Every nation, in every region, now has a decision to make. Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists."

This new doctrine of pre-emptive action would fundamentally reshape U.S. foreign policy. The first target was Afghanistan. When the Taliban refused to hand over Osama bin Laden, the United States, along with a coalition of allies, invaded Afghanistan in October 2001. The Taliban regime was quickly overthrown, but bin Laden escaped. This began a long and difficult war that would last for 20 years.

The Invasion of Iraq

The next major phase of the War on Terror was the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003. The Bush administration argued that the Iraqi dictator, Saddam Hussein, was a threat to global security. They claimed he possessed weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) and that he had ties to al-Qaeda.

The invasion of Iraq was far more controversial than the invasion of Afghanistan. It was not authorised by the United Nations and was opposed by key U.S. allies like France and Germany. The invasion successfully overthrew Saddam Hussein, but the claims that justified the war turned out to be false. No WMDs were ever found, and there was no evidence of a link between Saddam Hussein and the 9/11 attacks. The invasion and subsequent occupation plunged Iraq into a brutal civil war and led to the rise of new and even more extreme terrorist groups, most notably the Islamic State (ISIS).

The Consequences of the War on Terror

The War on Terror has had profound and lasting consequences, both at home and abroad.

• A New Era of Security and Surveillance: In the name of security, governments around the world, led by the U.S., passed sweeping new laws that expanded their surveillance powers. In the U.S., the Patriot Act gave the government new authority to monitor citizens' communications with less judicial oversight. This led to a major debate about the balance between security and civil liberties, a debate that was intensified by the revelations of mass surveillance by Edward Snowden. Air travel was transformed with new security measures, creating the airport security systems we know today.
• "Enhanced Interrogation" and Guantanamo Bay: The U.S. captured hundreds of suspected terrorists and detained them at a controversial prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, where they were held indefinitely without trial. The CIA also used brutal "enhanced interrogation techniques," widely considered to be torture, on some detainees. These actions damaged America's moral standing in the world.
• Human and Financial Cost: The wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, along with other counter-terrorism operations, have resulted in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people, the vast majority of them civilians. The financial cost has run into the trillions of dollars.
• A Less Stable World: While the War on Terror succeeded in degrading the leadership of al-Qaeda (Osama bin Laden was finally found and killed in Pakistan in 2011), many argue that it has ultimately made the world less safe. The instability created by the invasion of Iraq directly led to the rise of ISIS, a group even more brutal than al-Qaeda.

Summary

The 9/11 attacks were a traumatic event that triggered a fundamental shift in global politics. The subsequent U.S.-led War on Terror was a sprawling global conflict aimed at dismantling al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups. It led to long and costly wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and resulted in a massive expansion of government surveillance powers and a fierce debate over civil liberties. While it achieved some of its immediate goals, the War on Terror has had a devastating human cost and has left a legacy of instability across the Middle East that continues to shape our world today.

Discussion questions

• How did the live television coverage of the 9/11 attacks affect their impact on the world?
• Do you think the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003 was a justified part of the War on Terror? Why or why not?
• "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety." How does this quote by Benjamin Franklin relate to the debate over government surveillance after 9/11?
• Twenty years after it began, do you think the War on Terror was a success or a failure? Explain your reasoning.