Nation Marks 25 Years Since 9/11 With New Toll in View

Americans converged Friday on memorial sites in New York, Virginia and Pennsylvania for ceremonies marking 25 years since the September 11 attacks — the deadliest act of terrorism ever carried out on U.S. soil. This year's observances took on added weight as they formally acknowledged the tens of thousands of people who have died in the decades since from illnesses tied to the toxic debris cloud at Ground Zero.

In a departure from tradition, a seventh bell tolled at the Manhattan ceremony, supplementing the six that have historically sounded to honor each moment of impact and each tower's collapse. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani observed that the death toll from 9/11-related disease has now surpassed the number of people who perished that morning. Health officials put the number of first responders, volunteers and survivors who have succumbed to related illnesses at approximately 6,000. The September 11th Victim Compensation Fund has taken in at least 112,000 claims and paid out more than $18 billion.

Vice President JD Vance joined all three living former presidents — Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Joe Biden — at the National September 11 Memorial in lower Manhattan. President Donald Trump spoke at the Pentagon, where former National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice addressed attendees, saying she felt "deep personal remorse" for failing to prevent the loss of life that day. Trump later said the nation would "never, ever forget."

Hundreds assembled at the Flight 93 National Memorial in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where administration officials were also in attendance. Relatives of the 40 passengers and crew called out each name as bells sounded. A color guard folded the American flag and laid it near the site where the final remnants of the aircraft came to rest.

At the Manhattan gathering, Terry Strada — whose husband Tom was killed in the attacks — received prolonged applause after demanding accountability for what she characterized as Saudi Arabia's involvement in the plot. Victim families have pursued legal action against the Saudi government, which has consistently denied any role and described itself as a sworn enemy of al-Qaeda. A White House spokeswoman said the Trump administration is working to identify records responsive to the families' requests.

The men accused of masterminding the attacks have yet to face trial. A military judge at Guantánamo Bay has set jury selection in the case of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and three co-defendants for June 5, 2028 — more than 26 years after the attacks. Gordon Felt, president of Families of Flight 93 and brother of passenger Edward Felt, called the delay a source of "significant frustration."

Earlier this week, New York City made public more than 170,000 pages of records that had been withheld for years, revealing that city officials were aware air quality near Ground Zero was dangerous in the weeks following the attack. The documents reinforced longstanding grievances among first responders and survivors who have long argued they were never fully informed of the health risks they faced.

The 2001 attacks killed 2,977 people at the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and in Shanksville. In their aftermath, the U.S. government created the Department of Homeland Security, the Transportation Security Administration, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, ICE and the office of the Director of National Intelligence, and launched a 20-year military campaign spanning Afghanistan and Iraq that ultimately ended with the Taliban's return to power in 2021.