New York recalls September 11

Bells rang across New York and moments of silence were observed yesterday at an emotional ceremony to remember the 2,792 people killed at the World Trade Centre on September 11 two years ago, when hijacked planes destroyed the 110-storey twin towers.

The solemn ceremony marked the anniversary at the site now called Ground Zero as the State Department in Washington urged caution among Americans overseas due to growing indications the Islamist al Qaeda network, blamed for the September 11 attacks, was planning even "more devastating" attacks.

In New York thousands of victims' relatives, some holding flowers and portraits of their loved ones, took part in the ceremony, which lasted over three hours. Some wore T-shirts showing portraits of the dead, police and firefighters wore dress uniforms, bagpipes were played and many were tearful.

By the gaping hole where New York's tallest buildings once stood, the children of those who perished read out the names of the dead, leaving many family members wracked with tears. The children stood at a dais two by two, some wearing suits but most dressed casually, and read out the names, sometimes stumbling over pronunciations, each sequence ending with a child reading out the name of their dead mother, father, uncle, brother, sister or other relation.

About 3,000 children lost a parent in the attacks. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg began the ceremony saying that the children carried "the bright promise of tomorrow."

"Today again we are a city that mourns, we come here to honour those that we lost and to remember this day with sorrow," Bloomberg said. "But we also remember with pride, and from that comes our resolve to go forward."

And quoting Poet Laureate Billy Collins' poem "The Names," about the tragic human loss of September 11, he said, "So many names, there is barely room on the walls of the heart."

Bells rang and silence was observed at 8:46 a.m. (1246 GMT) to mark the moment when the first plane hit one tower and at 9:03 a.m. (1303 GMT), when the second hijacked airliner crashed into the other tower and again at 9:59 a.m. (1359 GMT) and 10:29 a.m. (1429 GMT) when each tower crumbled.

In Washington, President George W. Bush attended a service to remember the victims of the New York attacks and of two other hijacked planes that day - one that crashed into the Pentagon, killing 189 people, and the other into a field in Pennsylvania, where 44 lives were lost.

"We remember lives lost. We remember the heroic deeds. We remember the compassion, the decency of our fellow citizens on that terrible day," Bush said after a service near the White House. "We pray for the husbands and wives, the mums and dads, and the sons and daughters and loved ones."

In Shanksville, Pennsylvania, church bells tolled at 10:06 a.m. (1406 GMT) to mark the moment the plane plunged to earth after passengers apparently fought to regain control from hijackers. About 50 people sang "America the Beautiful."

In New York, Phil Rosenblatt, who lost his sister Muriel Siskopolous, said, "I feel like when I am here she is here with me too. The pain never goes away."

Rudolph Giuliani, dubbed "America's Mayor" for his skillful leadership in the city's darkest hour, invoked the fighting spirit of Britain's World War Two leader.

"Winston Churchill always believed, and we believe, that people who live in freedom have something to live for, something to fight for and even something to die for, and they will prevail over those that live in oppression."