美国周五纪念9-11恐怖袭击14周年

US Marks 14th Anniversary of 9/11 Attacks 美国周五纪念9-11恐怖袭击14周年

The United States is marking the 14th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist¹ attacks. U.S. officials and many other Americans attended observances Friday to remember those killed and their loved ones.

Nearly 3,000 people died on September 11, 2001 when hijackers used four passenger airplanes to carry out suicide² attacks in the United States. In addition to the victims, the 19 hijackers also were killed. Al-Qaida leader Osama bin³ Laden⁴ and his group claimed responsibility for the attacks. U.S. forces killed him in a surprise raid⁵ on his hiding place in Pakistan four years ago.

Friday morning, President Barack Obama, his wife and White House workers observed a public moment of silence in Washington. They gathered on the White House grounds at 8:46. That was the exact time when a hijacked⁶ airplane struck the World Trade Center.

In New York, families of the victims gathered for a ringing of bells and reading of the names of those killed in the terrorist attacks. Moments of silence were held at 8:46 and 9:03 in the morning, when a second hijacked plane also hit the World Trade Center.

Near Washington, U.S. Defense⁷ Secretary Ash Carter and other officials attended an observance at the Pentagon, the home of the Defense Department. They joined in remembering those killed when a hijacked airplane hit the Pentagon, killing⁸ 184 people.

Earlier Friday, a large American flag was hung down the side of the Pentagon, where the passenger jet hit.

There also was a moment of silence at 10:03 a.m. That was the time when a fourth hijacked plane crashed in western Pennsylvania. All 44 people on the plane were killed. Many Americans believe the hijackers had planned to attack a target in the nation’s capital.

The fourth plane came down in a field in the rural community of Shanksville. Today, a new visitors center there tells the story of the 9/11 attacks. The Flight 93 National Memorial was set up to recognize the passengers and crewmembers who attacked the hijackers.

Stephen Clark is with the U.S. National Park Service. It operates the visitors center and surrounding grounds.

“It just amazes me that this aircraft was but 18 minutes away from hitting Washington, D.C.”

The field was quiet on Friday, very different from the situation 14 years ago.

Gordon Felt’s brother Edward was one of the passengers on United Airlines Flight 93 on September 11, 2001.

“It is surreal at times. Early on, it became very evident to us very quickly that our loved ones, the events surrounding their deaths, had historical significance to our country.”

The last 35 minutes of Edward Felt’s life, and others on the plane, are explained at the new visitors center. Relatives hope visitors to the memorial will understand the full effect of the actions of their loved ones.

“They’ll get a sense of who those 40 heroes were, as well as what their collective actions did to help save the Capitol building that morning.”

Words in This Story

surreal – adj. very strange or unusual

significance – adj. importance; being worthy⁹ of attention

collective – adj. shared or done by a group of people

1 terrorist   

n.恐怖主义者，恐怖分子

参考例句：

• Without the gun,I'm a sitting duck for any terrorist.没有这支枪，我就成了恐怖分子下手的目标了。
• The district was put on red alert during a terrorist's bomb scare.这个地区在得到恐怖分子炸弹恐吓后作了应急准备。

2 suicide   

n.自杀，自毁，自杀性行为

参考例句：

• The number of suicide has increased.自杀案件的数量增加了。
• The death was adjudged a suicide by sleeping pills.该死亡事件被判定为服用安眠药自杀。

3 bin   

n.箱柜；vt.放入箱内；[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件

参考例句：

• He emptied several bags of rice into a bin.他把几袋米倒进大箱里。
• He threw the empty bottles in the bin.他把空瓶子扔进垃圾箱。

4 laden   

adj.装满了的；充满了的；负了重担的；苦恼的

参考例句：

• He is laden with heavy responsibility.他肩负重任。
• Dragging the fully laden boat across the sand dunes was no mean feat.将满载货物的船拖过沙丘是一件了不起的事。

5 raid   

v.劫掠，攫取，袭击，突击搜捕；n.突然袭击

参考例句：

• Our house was blown up in an air raid.在一次空袭中我们的房子被炸掉了。
• During their raid on the house,the police found a lot of drugs.在对这所房子的搜查中，警方发现了大量的毒品。

6 hijacked   

劫持( hijack的过去式和过去分词 )； 绑架； 拦路抢劫； 操纵（会议等，以推销自己的意图）

参考例句：

• The plane was hijacked by two armed men on a flight from London to Rome. 飞机在从伦敦飞往罗马途中遭到两名持械男子劫持。
• The plane was hijacked soon after it took off. 那架飞机起飞后不久被劫持了。

7 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

8 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

9 worthy   

adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的

参考例句：

• I did not esteem him to be worthy of trust.我认为他不值得信赖。
• There occurred nothing that was worthy to be mentioned.没有值得一提的事发生。