9/11: Queen offers ‘thoughts and prayers’ to victims’ families on 20th anniversary of attack

The monarch’s comments come as America pauses to remember the almost 3,000 people killed in the attacks

The Queen has marked the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks with a message to US President Joe Biden (Getty)

The Queen has marked the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks with a message to Joe Biden, in which she hailed to the “resilience and determination” of the communities that joined together to rebuild after the devastation.

The monarch said the “thoughts and prayers” of the Royal Family and the nation were with all of those who had lost their lives as the US president prepares to visit the site of all three attacks today for commemoration services.

Nearly 3,000 people were killed after al-Qaeda hijackers seized control of airplanes and used them to attack the World Trade Center’s twin towers and the Pentagon just outside Washington DC. Sixty-seven British nationals were among the dead.

To mark the twentieth anniversary of the attacks, the Queen recalled her own visit to the World Trade Centre in 2010, when she laid a wreath to remember those who had lost their lives.

The Queen’s message to Mr Biden said: “As we mark the 20th anniversary of the terrible attacks on September 11 2001, my thoughts and prayers - and those of my family and the entire nation - remain with the victims, survivors and families affected, as well as the first responders and rescue workers called to duty.

“My visit to the site of the World Trade Centre in 2010 is held fast in my memory. It reminds me that as we honour those from many nations, faiths and backgrounds who lost their lives, we also pay tribute to the resilience and determination of the communities who joined together to rebuild.”

In a message to be played at a memorial event at the Olympic Park in east London later today, Boris Johnson said the threat of terrorism remained but people refused to live their lives in “permanent fear”.

The prime minister said: “The fact that we are coming together today - in sorrow but also in faith and resolve - demonstrates the failure of terrorism and the strength of the bonds between us.”

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said the consequences of the attack were “still being felt to this day”, adding that the tragedy was “still so raw”.

“As we mark this anniversary I’m convinced our resolve has never been stronger,” he said. “We will continue to fight terror and violence, by promoting our values of justice and peace.”

Mr Biden arrived in New York City on Friday night ahead of a memorial service at the World Trade Centre due to take place this morning. Relatives will read out the names of the 2,977 people killed during a four-hour-long service.

There will also be six moments of silence observed throughout the ceremony, acknowledging when each of the World Trade Center towers was struck and fell and the times corresponding to the attack on the Pentagon and the crash of Flight 93.

In the afternoon, Mr Biden will travel to Shanksville, Pennsylvania before visiting the Pentagon for a wreath-laying ceremony.

Mr Biden urged Americans to show unity, “our greatest strength” in a video posted to social media last night.

“To me, that’s the central lesson of September 11th. It’s that at our most vulnerable, in the push and pull of all that makes us human, in the battle for the soul of America, unity is our greatest strength,” Mr Biden said in a six-minute message from The White House.

The memorial comes as the Biden administration faces criticism for the chaotic withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan last month. Thousands of Afghans desperately tried to flee the country amid the Taliban’s rapid military advance, culminating in the fall of Kabul on August 15.

Tony Blair, the prime minister at the time of the 9/11 attacks, last night warned that the international community must be prepared to take action against the Taliban if they allow the country to become a safe base for terrorists.

“They do need to know they are going to be held to account. They need to know that if they go back to sheltering terrorist groups that are coming up that we are prepared to act against them,” Mr Blair told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.