25 Years On: Guterres Honours 9/11 Victims, Warns Against Rights Abuses

UN Secretary-General António Guterres has described the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, against the United States as "an assault on humanity."

In a statement marking the 25th anniversary of the attacks, Guterres paid tribute to the victims, survivors, and first responders who rushed to Ground Zero — the site of the World Trade Center's twin towers in New York, located just a few miles from UN Headquarters.

"As we mark this somber occasion on 11 September, we remember the nearly 3,000 victims – from the United States and more than 90 countries – and stand with their families and loved ones," the UN chief said, adding that the organisation "continues to stand in solidarity with the people of New York City, the U.S., and with all those whose lives were affected by the attacks."

Guterres also noted that 2026 marks 20 years since UN Member States adopted the Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy, describing the fight against terrorism as a shared and still-unfinished task. "As we pay tribute to the victims, let us renew our shared commitment to build a future free from terrorism," he said.

In the years following the attacks, many countries strengthened their security measures as part of this commitment, in a period that reshaped geopolitics worldwide. However, independent experts appointed by the UN Human Rights Council — who are not UN staff and receive no salary for their work — have warned that too many nations adopted disproportionate responses that seriously undermined human rights, civil society, civic space, democracy, and the rule of law.

"'Wars on terror' have stretched foundational rules of international law beyond their breaking point," the experts said, noting that worldwide monitoring over the past quarter-century has exposed serious violations of international law carried out in the name of countering terrorism.

On the morning of September 11, 2001, UN Headquarters had been preparing to host the Secretary-General's annual Peace Bell ceremony, held in observance of the International Day of Peace. As news of the attacks spread, UN staff reacted just as tens of thousands of other New Yorkers did while heading to work that morning. Once the full severity of the attacks became clear, staff began evacuating the building via its stairwells — and the ceremonial bell was never rung that day.

UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric recalled "a sense of panic" spreading through the building at the time. "There were credible reports that another plane might be targeting the United Nations," he said, adding that a decision was made to keep then-Secretary-General Kofi Annan at his nearby residence for safety.

In the days that followed, an unusual sense of unity emerged within the United Nations, including within the Security Council. Dujarric said the attacks triggered a long chain reaction that reverberated both inside and outside the organisation. "It was like an explosion, and the shockwaves from it can still be felt today," he said.