Memorial services mark 9/11 anniversary

Memorial services were held in London today to mark the 10th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the US.

A service close to the US embassy in Mayfair was attended by Prime Minister David Cameron and the Prince of Wales, as well as relatives of British 9/11 victims.

Prince Charles laid a wreath during the ceremony, joined by other public figures, including the Duchess of Cornwall, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg and London Mayor Boris Johnson.

The ceremony was held in a memorial garden dedicated to the memory of the 67 Britons killed in the attacks on New York and the Pentagon in September 11, 2001.

An early morning service was held in nearby Grosvenor Chapel, known as the ‘American Church’ because of its situation close to the US embassy.

During the service, US Deputy Ambassador to Britain Barbara Stephenson lit a candle in memory of 9/11’s nearly 3,000 victims and as a symbol of light banishing the darkness.

In the evening, crowds packed Westminster Abbey for another service of remembrance joined by survivors of 9/11.

Dean of Westminster the Very Rev Dr John Hall said: “We remember not only the horror and the tragic loss of life, but also the heroism, the generosity, the love shared in moments of crisis.

“We remember the survivors, the bereaved. We come together to remember.

“Conscious of man’s inhumanity to man and of the effect over the past ten years of what was done that day, we come to pray not only for the victims and survivors but for an end to the violence and terror and that men and women might live together in peace and harmony.”

Preaching the sermon, director of the Awareness Foundation the Rev Nadim Nassar said that 9/11 and all tragedies were an opportunity for reconciliation and healing.

He said: “We can turn the defeat of humanity into victory. We can replace a culture of despair with a culture of hope and prove that the culture of life is the culture of God.”