22nd Anniversary of 9/11 Attacks: Rare Photos

On 11 September 2001, a series of coordinated terrorist attacks were carried out by the extremist group al-Qaeda* against the United States.

Two hijacked planes crashed into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, causing the buildings to collapse and another plane hit the western part of the Pentagon near Washington, DC. The fourth hijacked aircraft was forced by the passengers to crash-land near the city of Pittsburg in the state of Pennsylvania to prevent it causing any more civilian death.

Nearly 3,000 people were killed in the attacks, including passengers and crew members on the planes, office workers, and emergency responders.

Take a look at rare photos of the terrorist attacks in Sputnik's gallery.

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A New York Army National Guard Soldier mans a checkpoint at the World Trade Center in New York City on 14 September 2001 after the 9/11 attacks which brought down the Trade Center's Twin Towers. More than 14,000 members of the New York Army and Air National Guard, the City's Naval Militia and the Guard were on duty months after the attack.

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President George W Bush, then president, was reading a storybook to a class of children in the Emma E Booker Elementary School in Sarasota, Florida, when he was told about the attack.

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Smoke rises from the site of the World Trade Center on 11 September 2001.

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Rescue and emergency personnel rally around President George W Bush on Friday, 14 September 2001, during his visit to New York City.

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A worker looks on as a crane moves debris from the remains of the World Trade Center complex in New York City into a truck.

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A sign states "All Crossings to New York Closed" after the terrorist attack.

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President Bush is seen through the windows of the Oval Office in the White House, Washington as he addresses the nation about terrorist attacks at the World Trade Center and the Pentagon building.

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A crying woman stands on the street with an ambulance in background. The attacks claimed the lives of 2,977 innocent people of various nationalities and backgrounds.

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This photo released on 17 September 2001 by the US Navy Visual News service shows rescue workers conducting salvage operations descending deep into the rubble of the World Trade Center in New York.

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Firefighters struggle to contain the blaze after the hijacked American Airlines Flight 77, a Boeing 757-200, crashed into the Pentagon building.

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Onboard the aircraft carrier USS EISENHOWER, US Navy Sailors watch televised news reports, showing the World Trade Center, during the terrorist attacks.

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A rescue worker reaches into a New York Police car covered in debris while New York City firefighters douse the smoldering ruins in the background.

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A worker vacuums up debris in downtown Manhattan on 15 September 2001.

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The World Trade Center sign stands smothered in ash and soot.

CC BY-SA 2.0 / Jim Watson / U.S. Navy photo /

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As rescue and recovery operations continued, family members gathered at the Pentagon building.

*A terrorist group outlawed in Russia and many other countries.

Rarely Seen Images Of The 9/11 Attacks, 22 Years On