The 25th anniversary of 9/11 – From an American tragedy to global grief

Source: The Guardian, September 10, 2026

Today (11 September 2026) marks the 25^th anniversary of 9/11. The worst terrorist attack on American soil on September 11, 2001 brought trauma and tragedy to a nation that simply could not believe that there are people in the Muslim world who ‘hate us’ to the point where a determined and deadly group was prepared to engage in ‘suicide terrorism’. Nearly, 3000 innocent lives were lost when the Twin Towers in Manhattan, NY, collapsed as two aircraft slammed into the famous buildings. In response, a vengeful superpower engaged in a global war on terror that persisted for two decades, cost trillions of dollars, and brought untold misery to millions. An American tragedy became a global tragedy.

Brown University is one of the few institutions in the USA and the world at large that has sought to assemble in meticulous detail the human and fiscal costs of the ‘post-9/11 wars.’ Here are some grim proclamations from the diligent and morally courageous research team at Brown University.

• “ The wars have been accompanied by erosions in civil liberties and human rights at home and abroad.
• The U.S. government is conducting counterterror activities in 78 countries.
• An estimated 3.6-3.8 million people have died indirectly in post-9/11 war zones, bringing the total death toll to at least 4.5-4.7 million and counting.
• At least 940,000 people have died due to direct war violence, including civilians, armed forces on all sides, contractors, journalists, and humanitarian workers.
• U.S. policymakers scarcely considered alternatives to war in the aftermath of 9/11 or in debating the invasion of Iraq. Many of those alternatives are still available.
• The cost of the post-9/11 wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Syria, and elsewhere totals about $8 trillion (approximately 25 per cent of the current size of the US economy). This does not include future interest costs on borrowing for the wars.
• 38 million people have been displaced by the post-9/11 wars in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Syria, Libya, Yemen, Somalia, and the Philippines.
• The costs of caring for post-9/11 war vets will reach between $2.2 and $2.5 trillion by 2050 – most of which has not yet been paid.
• Post-9/11 war veterans are suffering a mental health crisis. At least four times as many active-duty personnel and war veterans of post-9/11 conflicts have died of suicide than in combat.
• The ripple effects on the U.S. economy have also been significant, including job loss and interest rate increases.”

Who will hold a superpower accountable for the colossal crimes that have been committed against humanity – and crimes that continue to be committed? Only its elected officials and citizens, as voters and conscientious members of society, can fulfill such much-needed responsibilities. One wonders whether the requisite political transformation will ever take place in the USA.