00:01A quarter of a century after hijacked planes struck New York, Washington and Pennsylvania,
00:07the attacks of 11 September 2001 remain lodged in the American psyche more firmly than almost
00:13any other event of the past 25 years. The 9-11 attacks were carried out by mostly
00:20Saudi hijackers orchestrated by mastermind Osama bin Laden of wealthy Saudi. 19 al-Qaeda
00:27operatives hijacked four airliners on the nearly cloudless autumn day in 2001. Two of the jets
00:33slammed into the World Trade Center's twin towers, causing the iconic 110-story buildings to collapse.
00:40A third plane struck the Pentagon while a fourth crashed into a field in Pennsylvania after
00:45passengers fought back. Nearly 3,000 people were killed on that world-altered day,
00:51and another 9,400 people died in its aftermath from 9-11-related illnesses.
00:57A ceremony was held at Ground Zero in New York to commemorate the attack's 25th anniversary,
01:03designed to be apolitical with no speeches. Traditionally, moments of silence are held
01:09at key points in the attack timeline. This year, another moment was added to honor those who died
01:14from cancer and other illnesses after being exposed to clouds of toxic dust. The event led to the U.S.-led
01:21global war on terrorism and the invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan. It changed air travel,
01:26prompted new surveillance and intelligence-gathering powers, and generated ongoing debate over the
01:31balance between security and freedom. The European Union is set to provide Ukraine
01:40with 6.1 billion euros in additional assistance to help the country purchase military equipment.
01:46Notably, the so-called made-in-Europe requirement will be lifted to procure U.S.-made Patriot interceptors,
01:53badly needed to shoot down Russia's devastating ballistic missiles.
01:57The funding will come from the bloc's 90 billion euro support loan, which reserves 28.3 billion euros for
02:03military aid and 16.7 billion euros for budget aid this year.
02:08The Ukrainian military edge depends on the rapid availability of critical products
02:12in the required quantities and within very short time frames. Accelerating EU deliveries
02:19through destocking, reprioritizing orders and ramping up the production remains crucial. And with today's
02:26decision, we managed to achieve such an outcome that all the 28.3 billion euros which were allocated for
02:37this year to finance Ukraine defense from Ukraine support loan now are decided. The news comes as allies
02:44race to supply Ukraine with air defense systems as Russia escalates its bombing campaign ahead of what
02:50EU officials expect to be the war's harshest winter yet. The Hong Kong court has sentenced three Tiananmen
02:59vigil activists to between five and seven years in prison for national security offenses.
03:06Nichuk Yang was sentenced to seven years, while Cho Hang-tung received seven years and three months.
03:11Albert Ho was given five years and two months. All three had been in custody since being charged in 2021
03:18under Hong Kong's national security law. The activists were former leaders of the now disbanded Hong Kong
03:25Alliance which organized annual vigils commemorating the victims of the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown.
03:37Cho, who represented herself in court, said she had nothing to repent for. Taiwan condemned the
03:44sentence saying the pursuit of democracy and human rights is not a crime.
03:54The Iran-backed Houthis seized control of Yemen's entire Red Sea coast and captured three strategic
04:01islands on Friday in a lightning offensive that cemented their hold on the vital Bab el-Mandeb
04:06Strait, licking Europe and Asia. It comes a day after the Houthis captured the strategic port city of
04:13MOCA from the Saudi-backed government forces, which responded by striking MOCA's airport.
04:19The capture of the islands and the coastline heightens the Houthis' ability to attack Saudi
04:24tankers, which they have been targeting since July. Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter,
04:31has relied on the Red Sea ever since Iran's Hormuz blockade choked off its shipments via the Gulf.
04:37The developments are likely to deepen the Middle East war's impact on international commerce,
04:43amid the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz by Iran, which hailed its Yemeni allies' advance on Friday.
04:51GENERAL
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