9/11: America's Painful Past of Terror and Loss - Essay Sample

Introduction

The US has faced painful pasts, with the 9/11 attacks being the most remembered. The 9/11 comes from the date that the attacks took place, which was the September 11th of 2001. This was the deadliest attacks on the US soil, conducted by 19 terrorists from the Islamic extremist group, the al-Qaeda. The 9/11 attacks involved suicide murders and the hijacking of airlines by the attackers that they used to strike the US significant sites, such as the World Trade Centre. On the attack date, groups of Islamic extremists boarded four planes, where they soon disabled the crew and took over. The first one hit the North Tower of the World Trade, New York, and most people thought that it was an accident. Seventeen minutes later, the South tower was severely hit, and at this point, citizens knew that their country was under attack. The third craft struck the Pentagon military base, that was the headquarters of defense, and it forced the aviation authority to order a ground stop. Unfortunately, the fourth craft had taken off, and on hearing the news, passengers tried to overcome the hijackers, but the flight crashed near Pennsylvania. With its leader as Osama Bin Laden, the attackers hijacked four planes that facilitated in destroying these significant buildings. These hits were meant to destabilize the US in terms of security and its financial ratings. However, the nineteen hijackers perished during the attacks leaving their leaders in Afghanistan alive. Osama bin Laden was later traced and executed according to the orders of the president. This was a way of preventing future attacks on the US, and it sent a message to the involved individuals. Therefore, the essay seeks to look at the underlying factors of the attack, considering that it caused damage to the social and financial sectors of the economy.

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Factors for the 9/11

The presence of the US military in Saudi Arabia was one of the stated motives for the attacks. After the Gulf War, the United States maintained its troops in Saudi Arabia. The forces played a significant role in enforcing laws that involved the protection of oil exports by the Fifth Fleet of the US, which was based in Bahrain. This was Operation Southern Watch that ensured that there were no fly-zones over Iraq (Aizpurua et al., pg.380). It made the citizens of Iran angry since they felt that the forces were overstaying in their country. Besides, they thought that the presence of US troops polluted their places of worship and other holy sites. In Laden issued an order to the American state to recall its forces so that its people can live peacefully. Bin Laden was angry at the US for taking control of its business and freedom. Due to this, he could not practice his secret activities and blamed the US government for it. Therefore; the attacks on the US seemed to seek revenge for the situation with the troops. This was stated as a clear motive for the occurrences.

Moreover, the sanctions against Iraq proved to be another motive for the attacks on the US soil. After the invasion of Kuwait by Iraq in 1990, the UN security enforced the UNSC Resolution 661, which imposed financial penalties on Iraq. The country would not receive food supplies, medical and other necessities for humanitarian utility. The Resolution set the terms that Iraq was to comply after losing the way. However, bin Laden was not pleased with the idea (Hong et al., pg.1620). During this time, many Iraqis were killed, and they felt that the US was repeating the massacres. Due to this, Bin Laden issued a decree to kill Americans, terming it as every Muslim's duty.

Furthermore, 9/11 was a provocation of the US into a war that would incite the Islamist revolution. It has been argued by the Middle Eastern scholars who believed that the attack was a part of a religious conflict that existed within the Islam community. Since Bin Laden's people considered themselves as true believers surrounded by sin, the attacks were meant to bring together all Muslims and fight against the West (Huddy et al., pg.455). Through this, he believed that the US would increase its military force in their region, and it would be easier to resist the non-Muslim government. Notably, Bin Laden was seeking to bring his people together so that they could have adequate power to fight against the US. In short, they would act as if the government is enforcing laws that are contrary to their religion and through unity, they would fight for a conservative Islamic government in the area. This would give them the authority to rule their country.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the 9/11 attacks destroyed a considerable part of the US economy, leaving many people jobless. Besides; it resulted in the loss of many lives and destruction of properties. The presence of US military troops in Saudi Arabia proved a motive for the attacks. Besides, the attacks were meant to provoke the US into a war that would prove beneficial to the Muslim community since they needed power. Also, the commercial and financial penalties against Iraq was among the factors that purported the 9/11 attacks. Therefore, US history will forever recall the September 11th attacks on its territory.

Works Cited

Aizpurua, Eva, et al. "15 years later: Post 9/11 support for increased security and criminalizing Muslims." Journal of Ethnicity in Criminal Justice 15.4 (2017): 372-393.

Hong, Barry A., et al. "Religious and Spiritual Aspects of Disaster Experience Among Survivors of the 9/11 Attacks on New York City’s World Trade Center." Journal of religion and health 58.5 (2019): 1619-1630.

Huddy, Leonie, and Stanley Feldman. "Americans respond politically to 9/11: Understanding the impact of the terrorist attacks and their aftermath." American Psychologist 66.6 (2011): 455.