Kenya has reaffirmed its commitment to the fight against terrorism as the United States marks the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks.
Principal Secretary for the State Department for Diaspora Affairs and Foreign Services Korir Sing’oei said Kenya shared the pain of the United States following the attacks that claimed thousands of lives.
“On this day, we pause to remember September 11th, 2001 — a tragic event of immense magnitude whose traumatic impacts reverberate to the present, across borders and generations,” Sing’oei said.
He said Kenya understood the pain caused by terrorism and violent extremism, citing attacks in Westgate, Dusit, Garissa and Kikambala.
“Our grief is shared. Our resolve is unshaken,” he said.
Singoie said Kenya stood in solidarity with the families of the victims, survivors, first responders and the people of the United States.
He also reaffirmed Kenya’s commitment to global peace and security, saying the fight against terrorism should involve addressing its underlying causes, including exclusion, poverty and the erosion of trust between people and their governments.
“We remember. We stand together. We choose peace,” he said.
The US Embassy in Kenya also marked the anniversary, remembering the 2,977 people who died in the September 11 attacks.
The embassy thanked Kenya for standing with the United States in efforts to keep both countries safe from terrorism.
Twenty-five years ago today, 19 terrorists associated with al Qaeda hijacked four commercial aircraft and carried out coordinated attacks that killed 2,977 people in the United States.
Two of the hijacked planes were deliberately flown into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City.
A third was crashed into the Pentagon, the headquarters of the US Department of Defense, in Arlington, Virginia.
The fourth plane, United Airlines Flight 93, crashed into an open field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, after passengers and crew members fought back against the hijackers.
The attacks, carried out on the morning of September 11, 2001, became one of the deadliest terrorist attacks in history and changed US foreign and domestic policy for decades.
