On 11th September 2001, the Islamist militant group Al Qaeda launched a concerted attack on the United States by hijacking four passenger planes and crashing two of them into the Twin Towers in New York and one into the Pentagon in Washington. The fourth passenger plane was forced down by its passengers before it reached its intended destination. The total death toll resulting from these events exceeded 2,750. The Al Qaeda attacks were portrayed as an assault on Western democracy.
On 11th September 1973, the Chilean army staged a military coup to oust the democratically elected Marxist president Salvador Allende, with the support and endorsement of the United States. This led to the brutal regime of Augusto Pinochet, during which at least 3,190 people were killed or 'disappeared'. The military coup was portrayed as an attempt to save the country from economic ruin and safeguard its future development and prosperity.
Isn't it strange how one 9/11 was commemorated at great length last week, whilst the other 9/11 has almost been consigned to oblivion?
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