US Leaders Unite to Commemorate 9/11 Attacks

US President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and former President Donald Trump came together in a rare joint appearance to commemorate the 9/11 attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people in 2001.

The ceremony, held at Ground Zero in New York City, featured relatives reciting the names of their loved ones who were killed in the attacks. The annual event commemorates the suicide attacks carried out by al-Qaeda operatives that hit the US Department of Defense headquarters in Manhattan and a field in Pennsylvania.

Former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg also attended the celebration, standing between Biden and Trump. Ohio State Senator J.D. Vance, Trump’s nominee for a delegate in his presidential campaign, also joined the ceremony.

After the ceremony in New York, Biden and Harris traveled to Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where passengers on a flight overpowered the hijackers and the plane crashed in a field, protecting another target from attack.

“23 years ago, terrorists thought they could subjugate our will,” Biden said in a statement. “They were always wrong. In the face of fear, we came together, to protect our country and help each other.”

Trump, who also plans to visit the memorial in Pennsylvania, told Fox News on Wednesday: “It was a very sad and horrible day. Nothing like this has ever happened before.”

Biden earlier issued a proclamation honoring those who died in the attack, as well as the tens of thousands of Americans who later volunteered for military service.

“We owe these patriots of the 9/11 generation a debt of gratitude that we can never fully repay,” Biden said.