Tuesday marked the 26th anniversary of the World Trade Center bombing that killed six people and injured more than 1,000.
An annual remembrance ceremony was held at the National September 11 Memorial & Museum in New York City, according to ABC7.
The ceremony included a reading of the victims’ names, as well as a moment of silence held at 12:18 p.m., the time the bomb was detonated in 1993.
The 26th anniversary of the World Trade Center bombing. (Jin S. Lee/9/11 Memorial & Museum.)
“The date of February 26 is engraved in our memories, and so, year after year, we gather at this sacred place to show our support for those who mourn as well as those who endured the chaos, confusion, and terror firsthand,” said Alice M. Greenwald, President & CEO of the 9/11 Memorial & Museum, in a statement emailed to American Military News.
The 26th anniversary of the World Trade Center bombing. (Jin S. Lee/9/11 Memorial & Museum.)
Six people died in the attack: John DiGiovanni, Robert Kirkpatrick, Stephen Knapp, William Macko, Wilfredo Mercado and Monica Rodriguez Smith and her unborn child.
Authorities estimated 50,000 people evacuated the twin towers after the bombing.
The 26th anniversary of the World Trade Center bombing. (Jin S. Lee/9/11 Memorial & Museum.)
A memorial fountain was later built to memorialize the victims, but it was destroyed in the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks that destroyed the towers. One surviving shard of the memorial was discovered and remains on display at the St. Peter’s Church where a memorial is also held each year, according to SI Live.
The names of the victims were later added to one of the memorial pools that was built to remember the nearly 3,000 9/11 victims.
The 26th anniversary of the World Trade Center bombing. (Jin S. Lee/9/11 Memorial & Museum.)
Four Islamic terrorists, later identified as Mohammad Salameh, Nidal Ayyad, Mahmoud Abouhalima and Ahmed Ajaj, were initially identified as responsible for the bombing. Investigators later captured two additional suspects, including Ramzi Yousef, who was deemed the ringleader.
The men loaded a rental van with 1,200 pounds of explosives and parked it in the underground parking garage
The men were able to safely escape before detonating the explosion, which created a crater spanning five stories
The 26th anniversary of the World Trade Center bombing. (Jin S. Lee/9/11 Memorial & Museum.)
The investigation entailed some 700 FBI agents and revealed additional terror plots targeting the U.N. building, the Holland and Lincoln tunnels, and the federal plaza where FBI offices are located.
The four initial men were convicted in March 1994 and sentenced to life in prison. Yousef was finally captured in Feb. 1995.
“He wanted the bomb to topple one tower, with the collapsing debris knocking down the second,” an FBI story noted. “The attack turned out to be something of a deadly dress rehearsal for 9/11; with the help of Yousef’s uncle Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, al Qaeda would later return to realize Yousef’s nightmarish vision.
