Recap 9/11 And The World After | TLDR | Dawn News English

22 years ago, a plane crashed into the World Trade Centre, marking the first attack on United States soil since Pearl Harbor. Moments later, a second plane hit the second tower, followed by an attack on the Pentagon.

In New York City, people jumped from the North Tower as the towers eventually collapsed, resulting in nearly 3,000 dead, thousands injured, and 400,000 exposed to carcinogenic dust.

Three weeks later, US President George W. Bush declared war on terrorism, targeting the Taliban in Afghanistan for refusing to surrender Osama bin Laden and other al Qaeda members.

Though the Taliban was quickly overthrown, capturing bin Laden proved elusive. Less than two years after invading Afghanistan, the Iraq War began, with the international coalition aiming to remove Saddam Hussein over false allegations of possessing "weapons of mass destruction."

After Saddam’s removal, post-war insurgency led to ongoing sporadic fighting. The US withdrew from Iraq in 2011. That same year, American Navy Seals killed Osama bin Laden in Pakistan.

The US remained involved in Afghanistan for 21 years. In 2014, the Senate Intelligence Committee heavily criticized the CIA, condemning its actions and efforts to downplay abuses, concluding that detainees were tortured and subjected to cruel, inhuman, and degrading conditions.

In 2014, ISIS declared a self-styled caliphate, seizing control of large portions of Syria and Iraq.

In August 2021, the Taliban rapidly regained control of Afghanistan as US and international forces withdrew. However, American forces continued to be actively engaged in global efforts to counter both Daesh/ISIS and al Qaeda, with no end in sight.