<\/p>\n
Nearly 3 000 people from the United States (US) and more than 90 other countries were killed during the 2001 attacks.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
UN Secretary-General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres described the attacks as \u201can assault on humanity itself\u201d and paid tribute to the victims, survivors and emergency workers. \u201cAs we mark this sombre occasion on September 11, we remember the nearly 3 000 victims, from the United States and more than 90 countries, and stand with their families and loved ones,\u201d Guterres said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Guterres said the UN continued to stand with New York, the US and everyone affected by the attacks.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The anniversary also marks 20 years since countries adopted the UN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy. \u201cAs we pay tribute to the victims, let us renew our shared commitment to build a future free from terrorism,\u201d Guterres said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
However, more than 30 independent UN human rights experts warned that disproportionate counter-terrorism measures adopted since the attacks had weakened civil society, democracy, civic space and the rule of law. \u201c\u2018Wars on terror\u2019 have stretched foundational rules of international law beyond their breaking point,\u201d the experts said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The experts cited unlawful occupations, war crimes, secret detention, enforced disappearances, torture, unfair military trials and abuses at the US-operated Guantanamo Bay detention facility. \u201cToo many governments have adopted unnecessary and disproportionate responses that have seriously undermined human rights, civil society, civic space, democracy and the rule of law,\u201d the experts said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Countries were urged to review counter-terrorism laws and establish independent oversight and accountability mechanisms.<\/p>\n
UN staff members also recalled evacuating the organisation\u2019s New York headquarters as the attacks unfolded.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
UN Spokesperson St\u00e9phane Dujarric remembered \u201ca sense of panic\u201d amid reports that another aircraft could be targeting the building.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The UN\u2019s annual Peace Bell ceremony was cancelled as staff evacuated. In the days afterwards, greater unity emerged within the organisation and UN Security Council. \u201cIt was like an explosion, and the shockwaves from it can still be felt today,\u201d Dujarric said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The experts said governments had a duty to protect people from terrorism, but warned that violations committed in the name of security could fuel further instability. \u201cState violations not only cannot defeat terrorism, but can breed it,\u201d the experts said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
–UN\/ChannelAfrica–<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":45283,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"news-type":[26],"class_list":["post-45282","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","news-type-general_news","entry"],"acf":{"short_description":"The United Nations (UN) has marked the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks with calls to defeat terrorism without undermining international law and human rights.","published_date":"","news_description":"The United Nations (UN) has marked the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks with calls to defeat terrorism without undermining international law and human rights.","form_embed":"","author":"","image_caption":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/45282","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/45282\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":45284,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/45282\/revisions\/45284"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/45283"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45282"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"news-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-type?post=45282"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}