New York is marking the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on Friday, September 11, 2026, with a solemn ceremony at the 9/11 Memorial in Lower Manhattan as families, survivors and public officials honour the 2,977 people killed in the 2001 terrorist attacks and reflect on the lasting consequences of the tragedy.
The anniversary comes a quarter-century after al-Qaeda operatives hijacked four commercial aircraft, crashing two into the World Trade Center in New York, another into the Pentagon and the fourth into a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, after passengers attempted to regain control of the aircraft.
The National September 11 Memorial & Museum scheduled its 25th annual commemoration for Friday morning. The private ceremony includes the reading of victims’ names and moments of silence corresponding to key events during the attacks.
The anniversary programme places bereaved families at the centre of the remembrance, with relatives reading the names of those killed.
The official memorial programme says the ceremony will honour victims of both the September 11, 2001 attacks and the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. It will also include a separate moment recognising people who later died from illnesses linked to exposure to toxins following the attacks.
The commemoration reflects how the meaning of September 11 has expanded beyond the events of one morning in 2001.
The attacks resulted in:
- 2,977 deaths directly attributed to the September 11 attacks;
- The destruction of the World Trade Center’s Twin Towers;
- The attack on the Pentagon;
- The crash of United Airlines Flight 93 in Pennsylvania; and
- Long-term health consequences for survivors, first responders and others exposed to the toxic environment around Ground Zero.
The 9/11 Memorial & Museum says more than 100 million Americans are now too young to have personal memories of the attacks, making education a major part of the anniversary’s focus.
Trump to Mark Anniversary at Pentagon
President Donald Trump is not attending the main New York ceremony. Instead, he is scheduled to commemorate the anniversary at the Pentagon, while Vice President JD Vance is expected in New York.
Former presidents George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Joe Biden and Bill Clinton are also expected at the Ground Zero observance, according to reports.
Trump’s decision to attend the Pentagon ceremony rather than the New York event has added a political dimension to an anniversary traditionally centred on remembrance.
Security has also been strengthened around the New York memorial. Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said an anti-drone unit would be deployed as a precaution, although authorities said they had no specific intelligence indicating a threat to the ceremony.
New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, the city’s first Muslim mayor, is attending the Ground Zero commemoration despite criticism from opponents who had called for him to stay away.
The issue has exposed some of the continuing political and social tensions surrounding the legacy of the 9/11 attacks.
Mamdani has also drawn attention to the health consequences of the disaster after the release of thousands of documents concerning what city officials knew about air quality in Lower Manhattan following the collapse of the World Trade Center.
The issue remains significant because exposure to dust and other contaminants at Ground Zero has been associated with serious illnesses affecting first responders, survivors and other people who lived or worked in the area.
The significance of the 9/11 anniversary extends well beyond the memorial ceremony.
The attacks reshaped American national security, aviation, foreign policy and public life. The creation of the Department of Homeland Security, expanded counterterrorism measures and changes to airport security were among the major consequences that followed.
At the same time, the health legacy continues to affect thousands of families.
The 9/11 Memorial & Museum has increasingly focused on ensuring that people born after 2001 understand both the scale of the attacks and the acts of courage and service that followed them. Its 25th-anniversary programme specifically seeks to connect younger generations with the history and lessons of the day.
New York will also mark the anniversary through the annual Tribute in Light, which illuminates the city’s night sky with two beams representing the former World Trade Center towers. The installation has become one of the city’s most recognisable annual acts of remembrance.
The 25th anniversary therefore serves as both a memorial to those lost and a reminder of the continuing human, political and health consequences of September 11, 2001. As a growing number of Americans have no firsthand memory of the attacks, preserving their history has become an increasingly important part of the commemoration.
