The US yesterday remembered the horror of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks two years ago, as thousands gathered at Ground Zero in New York -- the emotional centerpiece for a day of national mourning.
Across the world, people and governments marked the second anniversary of the attacks with prayers, promises to continue fighting terrorism and reflections on the changes that the 2001 attacks have wrought internationally.
Under brilliant blue skies in New York City, the families of many of the 2,792 people who died in the attack on the World Trade Center collected at the massive construction site that now covers the deep scar left by the twin towers' collapse.
The ceremony at Ground Zero was to be led by 200 children chosen from among the victims' families to read the individual roll call of all those who died.
More low-key than the public display of mass mourning of a year ago, the second anniversary was designed to be a comparatively private, reflective affair, without the ceremonial grandeur and fiery political speeches of last year.
"We're going to be an example, I hope, to the country of how one can balance mourning with building for the future .... That's why we're having the children read the names," said New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
"New York was hit very badly, but we are strong, we will come back. We're not going to forget those who were lost, but we're also not going to let the terrorists beat us," Bloomberg said.
"We remember lives lost, we remember the heroic deeds, we remember the compassion, the decency of our fellow citizens on that terrible day," US President George W. Bush said early yesterday in Washington.
Bush attended a church service near the White House and later observed a moment of silence at 8:46am on the White House lawn, the exact time the first plane struck the World Trade Center's north tower.
"We pray for the husbands and wives, the moms and dads, and the sons and daughters and loved ones," Bush said after the service at St. John's Church. "We pray for strength and wisdom. We thank God for the many blessings of this nation."
During the recitation of the names of the dead, family members were to descend a ramp and place flowers in the pit of the trade center construction site that remains the main burial ground for 1,272 victims whose remains have never been identified.
US embassies across Asia lit candles and laid wreaths yesterday while regional media highlighted waning sympathy for the US.
In Hong Kong, the US consulate lowered its flag to half-mast. At the US embassy in Manila, prayers followed the laying of a wreath while Philippine special forces patrolled the perimeter. In Tokyo, yellow-robed Buddhist monks led a group of 20 people to pray for peace outside the US embassy.
The Australian parliament observed a minute's silence. Australian Prime Minister John Howard told television: "This war against terrorism is likely to go on for years and nobody can regard themselves as beyond the reach of terrorism."
But in Malaysia more recent attitudes were reflected in an opinion column in the New Straits Times.
"No bells toll for the victims of unbelievable Israeli savagery," wrote Shad Faruqi.
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