15: 9/11: Reactions

From Wikipedia:

"Reactions to the September 11 attacks"

Reactions to the September 11 attacks included condemnation from world leaders, other political and religious representatives and the international media, as well as numerous memorials and services all over the world. The attacks were widely condemned by the governments of the world, including those traditionally considered hostile to the United States, such as Cuba, Iran, Libya, and North Korea. However, in a few cases celebrations of the attacks were also reported, and some groups and individuals accused the United States in effect of bringing the attacks on itself.Many countries introduced anti-terrorism legislation and froze the bank accounts of businesses and individuals they suspected of having connections with al-Qaeda and its leader Osama bin Laden, the accused perpetrators of the attacks.

United States:

In the immediate aftermath of the attacks, the Bush administration declared a war on terrorism, with the stated goals of bringing Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda to justice and preventing the emergence of other terrorist networks. These goals were to be accomplished by means including economic and military sanctions against states perceived as harboring terrorists and increasing global surveillance and intelligence sharing. Within hours after the September 11 attacks, Defense Secretary Rumsfeld speculated on possible involvement by Saddam Hussein and ordered his aides to make plans for striking Iraq;^[3] although unfounded, the association contributed to public acceptance for the 2003 invasion of Iraq. The second-biggest operation of the US Global War on Terrorism outside of the United States, and the largest directly connected to terrorism, was the overthrow of the Taliban rule from Afghanistan, by a US-led coalition.

United Nations:

On September 12, the United Nations Security Council members condemned the attacks and adopted resolution 1368 (2001), by which they expressed readiness to take all necessary steps to respond to the attacks of September 11 and to combat all forms of terrorism in accordance with their Charter responsibilities.Then-Secretary General of the United Nations, Kofi Annan, said: "We are all traumatized by this terrible tragedy."

 Canada: Operation Yellow Ribbon was commenced by Transport Canada and Nav Canada in response to the first plane hitting the first World Trade Center, allowing all commercial flights entering the U.S. to land at Canadian airports and remain there. Prime Minister Jean Chretien said of the attacks, "It is impossible to fully comprehend the evil that would have conjured up such a cowardly and depraved assault upon thousands of innocent people."

 NATO: held an emergency meeting of the alliance's ambassadors in Brussels. The secretary general, Lord Robertson, promised the United States that it could rely on its allies in North America and Europe for assistance and support, and pledged that those responsible would not get away with it.

 European Union: European foreign ministers scheduled a rare emergency meeting the next day of the attacks to discuss a joint response, as officials expressed solidarity with the United States. The external relations commissioner, Chris Patten, called the attacks "the work of a madman."

 Australia: Australian Prime Minister John Howard was in Washington D.C on the morning of the attacks and invoked the ANZUS Treaty, saying it demonstrated "Australia's steadfast commitment to work with the United States."

 Greenland: People gathered in Nuuk, and other town squares to light candles and offer prayers.

 Sweden: Trams and buses in Sweden came to a halt out of respect for the victims.

 Norway: Trams and buses also halted in Norway out of respect.

 Finland: Buses and other public transportation came to a stop to pay tribute to the victims of the attacks.

 France: The French newspaper of record, Le Monde, ran a front-page headline reading "Nous sommes tous Américains", or "We are all Americans". Following the attacks, then-French president Jacques Chirac released a statement: "It is with great emotion that France has learned of these monstrous attacks—there is no other word—that have recently hit the United States of America. And in these appalling circumstances, the whole French people—I want to say here—is beside the American people. France expresses its friendship and solidarity in this tragedy. Of course, I assure President George Bush of my total support. France, you know, has always condemned and unreservedly condemns terrorism, and considers that we must fight against terrorism by all means."

 Belgium: Hundreds of people held hands to form a human chain showing solidarity in front of the Brussels World Trade Center.

 Germany: Chancellor Gerhard Schröder described the attacks as "a declaration of war against the civilized world." Authorities urged Frankfurt, the country's financial capital, to close all its major skyscrapers. The new Jewish museum in Berlin canceled its public opening.In Berlin 200,000 Germans marched to show their solidarity with America. Three days after the attacks, the crew of the German destroyer Lütjens manned the rails as they approached the American destroyer USS Winston S. Churchill, displaying an American flag and a banner reading "We Stand By You".

 Poland: Firefighters and other professional rescue workers sounded their vehicle sirens, letting loose a collective wail one warm afternoon. Many Poles also expressed their sympathy by lighting hundreds of candles in front of the U.S. embassy in Warsaw.

 Italy: race car drivers preparing for the Italian Grand Prix silenced their engines out of respect for the victims of the attacks.

 Czech Republic: National Days of Mourning was declared.

 Austria: Church bells tolled in unison.

 Hungary: Firefighters tied black ribbons to their trucks in honor of the victims.

 Croatia: Many school children in Dubrovnik took time to observe a moment of silence, and declared a National Day of Mourning.

 Greece: Greek Prime Minister Costas Simitis expressed his dismay of the attacks on the United States. quoting "Greece condemns, most categorically, these horrific acts. We hope that the culprits be located and brought to justice immediately." Many Greek citizens called the U.S. embassy to offer their support and express their outrage over the attacks. Security was also ramped up at American and other European embassies in Athens. Opposition candidate Kostas Karamanlis was in the United States at the time, attending the opening of a Greek Studies Department at Tufts University in Boston. Karamanlis also condemned the attacks.

 Bulgaria: People gathered in town squares to light candles and pray.

 Ireland: A National Day of Mourning was held on September 14 and a remembrance mass held on September 12, 2001; Ireland was one of the few countries to hold a service day. Taoiseach Bertie Ahern and President Mary McAleese were both in attendance.

 Israel: The day after the attacks, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon urged the world to fight terrorism and declared a national day of mourning in solidarity with the United States.To commemorate and honor the victims of terror attacks, the 9/11 Living Memorial Plaza, a Cenotaph designed by Eliezer Weishoff, was built in Ramot, Jerusalem.

 Japan: Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said, "This outrageous and vicious act of violence against the United States is unforgivable." Special security precautions were ordered at all United States military installations.

 South Korea: Immediately after the attacks, South Korean President Kim Dae-jung instructed all available ministries to assess the situation, and to ensure the safety of all South Korean citizens living in the affected regions. He later offered his condolences, stating that he "would like to convey our most sincere condolences and sympathies to the people of America for their tremendous loss and the pain and the suffering that they suffer due to the terrorist attack." He also voiced his support for President Bush and the United States, and offered his full support and assistance.

 New Zealand: New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark stated "It's the sort of thing the worst movie scenario wouldn't dream up," and a New Zealand Herald DigiPoll revealed that after the attacks that two thirds of New Zealanders supported a NZ pledge of troops to Afghanistan. In 2003, New Zealand began administering a "Pacific Security Fund" to vulnerable nations in the Pacific region aiming at securing and preventing terrorism from entering the region, there is an annual fund of NZD$3 million that is paid by the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) and is used to provide support to Pacific Island countries.

 United Kingdom: British security forces across the world were placed on maximum alert. Prime Minister Tony Blair pledged that Britain would stand "full square alongside the U.S." in the battle against terrorism. Queen Elizabeth expressed "growing disbelief and total shock." In London, the U.S. national anthem was played at the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace under orders from Her Majesty, and traffic on The Mall came to a halt during the tribute. A Service of Remembrance was held at St. Paul's Cathedral attended by the Queen, the Prince of Wales, Prime Minister Tony Blair, U.S. Ambassador William Farish, and a congregation of thousands inside and outside the cathedral.

 Bangladesh: People gathered in mosques in prayer, and clerics condemned the attacks.

 Indonesia: Many Indonesians gathered on beaches to pray for the victims of the attacks.

 Kazakhstan offered the use of its airspace for relief and offered its condolences.

 Kyrgyzstan: The government of Kyrgyzstan offered its condolences, as well as the use of its airspace.

 Tajikistan: People gathered in squares to light candles, prayed and offered good wishes.

 Turkey's president Ahmet Necdet Sezer and prime minister Bülent Ecevit condemned the attacks. The Turkish government then ordered all of its flags at half-mast for one day of mourning.

 Turkmenistan offered its condolences and offered the use of its airspace for relief.

 Uzbekistan: Leaders in Uzbekistan called the White House to offer its condolences and also offered the use of its airspace.

 Azerbaijan: Azerbaijanis gathered in town squares to light candles, pray and offered good wishes.

 Sudan: Leaders and Clerics in Sudan denounced the attacks.

 Pakistan: Islamic clerics in Pakistani mosques condemned the attacks.However, a 2004 Pew poll found that 65% of Pakistanis viewed Osama Bin Laden favorably.

 Yemen: Clerics in Yemeni mosques heavily denounced the attacks and labelled them as "cowardly" and "un-Islamic".

 Saudi Arabia's government and the royal Saudi family condemned and denounced the attacks and offered to provide financial aid to the victims.

 Egypt's president Hosni Mubarak vehemently denounced the attacks.

Libya: Muammar Gaddafi condemned the attacks.

 Syria: Bashar al-Assad also condemned the attacks.

Iraq: After first justifying the 9/11 attacks, Saddam Hussein, a few months later, offered his sympathy for the victims and Americans killed in the attacks.

 Jordan: King Abdullah II condemned the 9/11 attacks. Many Jordanians signed letters of sympathy.

 Kuwait: The Kuwaiti government condemned and denounced the 9/11 attacks. Some Kuwaitis lined up at local Red Crescent hospitals to donate blood.

 Qatar: Emir Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani condemned the 9/11 attacks and denounced the terrorists who carried them out.

 Bahrain: King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa condemned the 9/11 attacks.

 Iran: Despite Iran's rocky relations with the U.S., both Iranian president Mohamed Khatami and Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei condemned and denounced the attacks and the terrorists who carried out the attacks. Iranians who gathered for a soccer match in Tehran two days after the 9/11 attacks observed a moment of silence. There was also a candlelight vigil.

 China's President Jiang Zemin said he was "shocked" and sent his condolences to President Bush, while the Foreign Ministry said China "opposed all manner" of terrorism. In Beijing, tens of thousands of people visited the U.S. Embassy, leaving flowers, cards, funeral wreaths and hand-written notes of condolence on the sidewalk out front.

 South Africa's president halted all broadcasts and was left in solitude for the rest of the day after offering financial support to the U.S.

 Cuba's government expressed its pain and solidarity with its longtime adversary and offered air and medical facilities to help.

 Brazil: Rio de Janeiro put up billboards that showed the city’s famous Christ the Redeemer statue embracing the New York City Skyline.^[

 India declared high alert across most of its major cities and conveyed "deepest sympathies" to the U.S. and condemned the attacks. Children in the country taped up signs that read, "This is an attack on all of us".

 North Korea: A spokesperson for the North Korean Foreign Ministry was quoted by state-run news agency KCNA as saying: "The very regretful and tragic incident reminds it once again of the gravity of terrorism. As a UN member, the DPRK is opposed to all forms of terrorism and whatever support to it and this stance will remain unchanged."

 Mongolia: Permanent Representative of Mongolia Amb. J. Enkhsaikhan condemned the attacks, calling them "Barbaric" and "Heinous", and claimed: "The world community not only strongly condemned these barbaric acts and reiterated its determination to fight all manifestations of terrorism".

 Philippines: Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo sent a letter to President Bush assuring the safety of U.S. facilities in the Philippines. She said that "nothing can describe the shock and horror of all humanity in the face of the unimaginable acts of terror inflicted on the United States." She added that the Filipino people extends condolences to all victims of the attacks. Arroyo also ordered the Philippine consulate in New York to search and confirm Filipino casualties of the attacks.

 Russia: Russian troops were put on alert in response to the attacks. President Vladimir Putin held an emergency meeting of security officials and said he supported a tough response to these "barbaric acts".^[9] He also informed Condoleezza Rice by telephone that any and all pre-existing hostility between the two countries would be put aside while America dealt with the tragedy. In Moscow, women who spoke no English and had never been to America were captured on film sobbing in front of a makeshift tribute on a sidewalk. In addition, television and radio stations went silent to commemorate the dead.

 Kenya: The Maasai people in a Kenyan village gave 14 cows to help and support the United States after the attacks.

 Ethiopia: Ethiopians offered their prayers.

 Mexico increased its security, causing enormous traffic jams at the United States border and officials said they were considering closing the entire border. President Vicente Fox expressed "solidarity and our most profound condolences".

 Ukraine immediately declared solidarity with the United States, and offered moral, technical and military support to the extent of their infrastructure. The Ukrainian parliament passed three resolutions all in favor of assisting the United States following the attacks. Congressman Bob Schaffer expressed gratitude towards Ukraine and its stance on terrorism, saying "Ukraine's condemnation of international terrorism, its much-appreciated support in the war on terrorism, its tough newly enacted laws to combat terrorism, and its commitment to fight at the side of the United States and its allies for civil society and democracy demonstrates the role Ukraine and her people intend to play in the emerging democracy."

^ These are from 15 years ago and show that the attacks affected the world as well as the US. ^

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reactions_to_the_September_11_attacks

Lviv Remembers

From the DW:

"Lviv remembers its Jewish past"

Residents of the Ukrainian city of Lviv are learning about and coming to terms with one of their most painful chapters: the annihilation of their Jewish community during World War II.  It's one of the paradoxes of Ukraine that some of the most horrific events in the history of the 20th century are often commemorated in the most idyllic of settings. On Sunday, a few hundred people gathered among the quaint, narrow streets of Lviv's old city, under a cloudless sky, and remembered the Nazi-led destruction of the city's Jewish population - one of eastern Europe's oldest and largest. The ceremony took place on a square that was once the spiritual heart of the community - where two of the city's biggest synagogues and the Beth Hamidrash, a "house of learning," stood. For years the site was a weed-strewn lot. Beer bottles and cigarette butts littered the ground where the 16th century Golden Rose Synagogue once was. On one of the remaining walls, one could make out the traces left by the ark of the Torah. Now, however, the area is filled by a memorial complex, called "The Space of Synagogues" - the end product of an eight-year process to recapture the area, while doing justice to the magnitude of the loss. Jews made up about one-third of Lviv's pre-war population, numbering more than 200,000. The Holocaust completely wiped out this community - only around 800 survived. But it did more than erase lives - it obliterated much of the architecture and infrastructure that sustained Jewish existence and culture. Afterward, Soviet authorities demolished, commandeered or left to decay what few building were left over at the war's end. When Ukraine became an independent country 25 years ago, Jewish life was a faint shadow of what it once was. The destruction extended to people's memories. Many Ukrainians are unaware of the vibrant communities that once lived among them, and how exactly they disappeared. "I would say that our knowledge is weak," said Sofia Dyak, director of the Center for Urban History of East Central Europe, which sponsored the project with the Lviv city government, the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ) and Jewish organizations. "But the question is, what can you do?" she said. "Let's make the history visible - but how?" To this end - to try to convey something that no longer existed - the project sponsors commissioned two German architects, Sophie Janke and Franz Reschke, from Berlin, who designed an open area with different installations. "We interpreted three separate atmospheres," Reschke said. For the Beth Hamidrash, he and Janke strove to convey "a vivid character and open spaces": A large grass square occupying the area where the building stood, with white stone blocks outlining its contours. The remains of the Golden Rose have been cleaned up but left standing as they were. "We wanted the authentic ruins, so that people reflected over the destruction of these buildings," Reschke said. And in the center of these two, is a structure called "Perpetuation," consisting of a line of irregular vertical stone slabs, etched with photos and quotes from Lviv's one-time Jewish residents. "We wanted to show that there was a rich history before," said Janke. "But then, in the middle of the line, there's a space - this is when fear came. After that, the stones break down and get lower." "There aren't quotes on the last stones - because the future is still to be written," she said. Most of all, the complex is to be a place for education. Reschke and Janke say they strive to spark a discussion, between the country's various communities, as well as among ethnic Ukrainians themselves. "We hope this installation won't be a place for a chat up and to drink a beer, but a place to reflect, think and get a dialogue started," says Reschke. The process won't just be intellectual. "We want for people who live here to have a chance to learn - but also to learn emotionally, and this emotional knowledge can lead them elsewhere," said Sophia Dyak. "Each place in Ukraine has a similar story," she added. "And Ukrainians who visit Lviv may be provoked to ask, 'What happened in my home town?'" At the opening ceremony, seven decades after the events, emotions were still strong. Many in the crowd were noticeably moved. Afterward, onlookers - following Jewish tradition at gravesites - placed pebbles on top of the stone slabs of the Perpetuation installation. Dr Leszek Allerhand, a Holocaust survivor, lived next to the synagogues. When he was 10 years old, German forces, with the help of police recruited from the local population, burned them to the ground. "Our apartment was five meters from the Great Synagogue," he said. "The police cordoned off the area, so there were no people there. Then German soldiers set the buildings on fire, and the smoke was so thick, you couldn't see anything." Dr Allerhand now lives in Zakopane, Poland, but came to Lviv to share his memories at the ceremony. "It's good that people are remembering," he told DW. "It's good that they are not just remembering, but also feeling what happened."

^ I visited Babi Yar in Kyiv (the site of the largest mass-murder in a single day outside of the concentration and death camps around 33,700 men, women and children) and while there are numerous memorials (some built in Soviet times and others since independence) the ravine where the murders happened in September 1941 has turned into a park and that park is used as a sort-of "lover's lane." I am fine with it being a park where children play, etc. but to be used as a "lover's lane" is just wrong. Places across the Ukraine and the rest of Eastern Europe need to remember the horrible acts committed against their people. ^

http://www.dw.com/en/lviv-remembers-its-jewish-past/a-19527000