Two babies are born to mothers widowed in attack

Terror in America: Victims' Families

Amid the horror, a tiny space for hope. Two babies have been born to mothers widowed by last week's attacks against America.

Weighing 7lbs 10 oz, and with a shock of reddish hair, Gabriel Benjamin Jacobs was born just six days after his father, Ariel, died.

Mr Jacobs, a senior executive with an international software company, was attending a conference at the Windows of the World restaurant on top of the World Trade Centre, when the two hijacked aircraft flew into the twin towers. The red hair comes from his side of the family.

Mr Jacobs, 29, had prepared to be with his wife, Jenna, at the birth. His family said he was thrilled by the prospect of becoming a father. His place at the birth, at a New York hospital on Monday, was taken instead by Gabriel's two grandmothers.

Silvia Jacobs, Ariel's mother, said: "She was a champ. She did beautifully. She's a very strong young woman. She's determined to be the wonderful mother that she would have been anyway.

"Ariel was my only child and Gabriel will be my only grandchild. I am holding up because I am strong. We have to keep Jenna together."

Mrs Jacobs said that the new mother was glad the labour was over and that she was spending all her time with her baby. "They both so wanted this child," she added. "They had such plans. This is a horrible loss. Jenna says [Gabriel] looks like Ari. Maybe it's true. Maybe it's her wish."

Another widow gave birth on Thursday last week. Kellie Lee gave birth to Allison Lee in Los Angeles. Allison's father, Daniel, a stage carpenter for the band Backstreet Boys, was on board American Airlines Flight 11, one of the jets that crashed into the skyscrapers.