Consequences of 9/11

Consequences of 9/11

Introduction

It has been 11 years that a terrorist attack has transformed the world into the new one in many aspects, be it political, social, religious or economical. It is quite impossible to forget that morning when the tallest infrastructure was struck down with airplanes, claiming thousands of lives within few minutes. September 11, 2001, 19 terrorists hijacked four airliners. 2 Boeing hit the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York, another Boeing, Flight 77; hit the Pentagon in Washington, and the last plane never reached its target, since crashing in Pennsylvania. The two towers that reach 415 meters in height will collapse within two hours after the impact. The terrible shock of the aircraft against the concrete has weakened the structure; kerosene fueled a huge fire which weakened the steel, which has not played its role holder. When a floor fasteners tens of tons, the impact height, yielded a chain reaction spread, causing the collapse of buildings. This incident or, rather say a manmade disaster effected different segments of the society in different ways (Huddy et al, 2002).

Discussion

The attacks of 11 September 2001 have redrawn the geopolitical map of the world. In Western countries, the attacks in New York were considered abominable and caused a radical change in attitudes. A policy of war against terrorism, Al-Qaeda and the "Axis of Evil" - name used by George Bush on Iraq, Iran and North Korea - has been triggered. We have entered an era "hyper-terrorism" (Soesastro, 2002). Many European countries were willing to cooperate with the Americans, key allies to try to track down terrorists (Huddy, et al, 2002). WTC events have clearly reinforced the American hegemony and exacerbated the sense of belonging to the West. Feeling more than ever Westerners, Europeans wanted to play a role in this common fight against terrorism, especially led by the United States.

Nine Eleven is a milestone in Washington's foreign policy: its action against "rogue states" and terrorist groups was elevated to official doctrine. This new crusade, under the slogan generic "fight against terrorism", rendered legitimate interference in countries regarded as potential accomplices of international terrorism. Thus Afghanistan was attacked by the United States a month after the collapse of the twin towers. According to Bush, an act of terrorism requires a military response. However, many Americans have criticized the excesses of this administration catastrophic. The war in Afghanistan was conducted with the explicit approval or passive international community. With its new policy of Homeland Security, Bush benefited from largesse in the definition of the principle of international law on self defense. For most Americans, the attack was actually considered an act of self-defense. This was the justification provided by the United States to have invaded Afghanistan.

Intervention against states suspected of being supporters of terrorist networks or manufacturers of weapons of mass destruction is also part of the war against terrorism. The events of September 11 have therefore also urged America to attack Iraq. As in Afghanistan, the ...