US not to falter in war against terrorism: Obama

WASHINGTON: US President Barack ObamaBarack Obama pledged on the eighth anniversary of the Sept 11 terrorist attacks that his nation ‘will never falter’ in the fight against Al Qaeda and its allies.

The pledge, delivered at a ceremony at the Pentagon, followed similar statements from US defence chiefs and Nato’s secretary general, warning that a sign of weakness in Afghanistan at this stage would jeopardise America’s security and that of its Western allies.

‘Let us renew our resolve against those who perpetrated this barbaric act and who plot against us still,’ said the president while addressing a gathering of about 500 people under rain-filled skies at the Pentagon.

‘In defence of our nation we will never waver; in pursuit of Al Qaeda and its extremist allies, we will never falter,’ he vowed, while invoking the memories of a series of terrorist attacks eight years ago.

Hijackers associated with Al Qaeda took control of four passenger planes on Sept 11, 2001, crashing two into the World Trade Centre in New York and a third into the Pentagon. A fourth, United Airlines Flight 93, crashed into a field in Pennsylvania after the passengers and crew tried to retake control of the plane.

In all, about 3,000 people were killed.

‘Let us renew our commitment to all those who serve in our defence —- our courageous men and women in uniform and their families and all those who protect us here at home,’ said Mr Obama while addressing the sombre ceremony at a place where 125 people were killed on 9/11.

‘Mindful that the work of protecting America is never finished, we will do everything in our power to keep America safe.’

His vow, made before he laid a wreath at a memorial for those killed at the Pentagon, was also an attempt to rally Americans behind the war in Afghanistan as opinion polls showed faltering public support for the conflict.

President Obama, who has ordered the dispatch of 21,000 more US troops as part of a new Afghanistan-Pakistan strategy targeting Al Qaeda and its Taliban allies, reminded Americans that to prevent future terrorist attacks, it was important to defeat extremists hiding in the Pak-Afghan region.

Paying tribute to those killed on 9/11, he noted: ‘Eight Septembers have come and gone. Nearly 3,000 days have passed — almost one for each of those taken from us. But no turning of the seasons can diminish the pain and the loss of that day.’