Terrible 9/11
THE 11th day of September, 2001 (9/11), started out as an ordinary day in bustling New York. As residents headed to work, the first plane struck one of the twin towers of the World Trade Centre at 8.46 am. Minutes later, another plane hit the second one. A third plane hit the Pentagon building while a fourth was downed in Pennsylvania. This was a massive terrorist attack against what was then the…
On September 11, 2001, an ordinary day transformed into a watershed moment for global geopolitics. The first plane struck the World Trade Center's twin towers at 8:46 am, followed by another hitting the second tower. A third plane hit the Pentagon, while the fourth was shot down in Pennsylvania. This massive terrorist attack against the world's sole superpower changed everything rapidly.
Transnational terrorism quickly rose to the top of global priorities. The US pushed the UN Security Council to adopt Resolution 1373 on September 28, 2001, which obligated all member states to prevent, suppress, and criminalize the financing of terrorism. A few years later, Resolution 1540 was adopted, obliging member states to prevent non-state actors from acquiring weapons of mass destruction. This created a comprehensive global ecosystem against non-state actors carrying out terrorist attacks worldwide.
The US and NATO countries launched a fierce attack against Taliban-led Afghanistan, which had provided refuge to Al Qaeda, the group held responsible for 9/11. This led to a war that became Washington's longest since World War II. With Pakistan's help, the US eliminated Al Qaeda leadership, except for Osama bin Laden, who was killed in 2011.
However, the US war against the Taliban dragged on with no success. Pakistan had advised against military defeat, advocating for political solutions. The US ultimately concluded a peace deal with the Taliban in 2020 but failed to withdraw troops responsibly, leaving a vacuum filled by the Taliban instead of an interim government representing all Afghan factions.
Additionally, the US left behind massive arms and ammunition, which have since been used for terrorism by groups like the TTP and BLA.
Just two years after 9/11, the US invaded Iraq to destroy alleged weapons of mass destruction, setting a dangerous precedent of using force illegally and pre-emptively. This precedent has been followed by other powers, like Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2014 and 2022 and India's aggression against Pakistan in 2016, 2019, and 2025. As a result, armed conflicts have expanded worldwide. According to the ICRC, there are currently 130 active armed conflicts globally.
Pakistan became the front-line state in the US-led global war against terrorism, dealing with infiltrating terrorists and extremists from Afghanistan while prosecuting extremist outfits in the country. Pakistan found itself "in the line of fire," as Gen Musharraf put it. India, meanwhile, used 9/11 to team up with the West against radical Islam, projecting itself as a victim of alleged Pakistan-sponsored terrorism in Indian-occupied Kashmir and casting the Kashmiri struggle for self-determination as transnational terrorism.
The concept of 'responsibility to protect' emerged, with powerful countries arguing that if a state's leadership was unable or unwilling to protect its people, it became the international community's responsibility. Using this concept, the West intervened in several Arab countries, leading to the "Arab Spring" and eventually "Arab autumn."
The events of 9/11 profoundly changed global and regional geopolitics, with globalization becoming the first casualty and using force becoming the main arbiter of international disputes. Multilateralism was marginalized, and international law was violated with impunity. Today's world disorder can be traced back to 9/11, that fateful September day.
Written by urgent.news from Dawn's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
