As Americans, we will not or ever be at war with Islam, said Obama.....Does he not understand the terrorists ARE radical Islam!

Obama evidently does NOT know who we are at war with! What a disgrace this President is!

Solemn 9/11 ceremonies held at Ground Zero, Pentagon, Shanksville, Pa.


Family members of the victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center stand at a reflecting pool during a memorial service commemorating the ninth anniversary of the attacks Saturday.CAPTIONBy Chang W. Lee, AP Solemn ceremonies are being held today at Ground Zero, the Pentagon, and Shanksville, Pa., to mark the ninth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. President Obama said Americans held true to their ideals in the face of attempts by terrorists to "divide and demoralize us." In New York, at Ground Zero, the names of the victims of 9/11 are being read. Vice President Biden is attending the ceremony. At Shanksville, Pa., first lady Michelle Obama and former first lady Laura Bush are attending ceremonies at the site where passengers brought down a hijacked plane, foiling attempts by terrorists to attack elsewhere in Washington, D.C.


Update at 10:34 a.m. ET: First lady Michelle Obama, speaking at Shanksville, Pa., says she comes as an American who is "filled with a sense of awe of the heroism of my fellow citizens."



Update at 10:24: Former first lady Laura Bush, speaking at Shanksville, Pa., where a hijacked plane crashed after the terrorist attackers were overpowered by passengers, says that on 9/11 "we saw the worst of our enemies and the best of our nation." "America was attacked, but the deepest belief of our democracy was vindicated," she says, "that our greatness and strength is found in the character of our citizens."



Update at 10:16 a.m. ET: At the Pentagon, USA TODAY's Marisa Kendall reports that there was polite applause when the president took the stage. A middle-aged woman put an arm around her companion as the president spoke about honoring the lives lost in the attacks. Afterward, the military band started playing again; guests began mingling and conversing as a few children ran between the groups of adults.

Update at 10:01 a.m. ET: Jay Winuk, whose younger brother Glenn, 40, a volunteer EMT, was killed in the collapse of the World Trade Center's south tower, tells USA TODAY'sRick Hampson that there is a risk that 9/11 as a day of remembrance and service could be politicized. "The day should be reserved for those who lost loved ones so they can remember them," he says. " He adds: "It saddens me that there's so much controversy and divisiveness right now related to 9/11. Will it be the worst 9/11 since 2001? We won't know until 9/12. It's always a difficult day.''


Update at 9:43 a.m. ET: Obama says we will not hunker down behind walls of mistrust and "suspicion." Instead, he says, the nation will resist "those who sought to divide and demoralize us." "We will stay true to our traditions at home, as a diverse and tolerant nation," he says. "We will not give in to their hatred," Obama said, despite the terrorists' efforts to spark conflicts among faiths. "As Americans, we will not or ever be at war with Islam."


A carnation is placed on the bench to remember Kris Romeo Bishundat, a victim at the 9/11 Pentagon attack, prior to an event to mark the anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks at the Pentagon Memorial on Saturday.CAPTIONBy Alex Wong, Getty ImagesUpdate at 9:40 a.m. ET: The president says those who died are etched in our nation's memory "now and forever." Those who attacked on 9/11, the president says in his remarks, were attacking the ideals of the United States. America's greatest weapon, he says, is to "stay true to who we are as Americans."


Update at 9:34 a.m. ET: President Obama, speaking at the Pentagon, says this is a day of remembrance and reflection and "with God's grace, a day of unity and renewal. "

Update 9:31 am. ET: President Obama is laying a wreath at the Pentagon in memory of 184 people who died when a plane crashed into the building.

Update at 9:18 a.m. ET: At the Pentagon, USA TODAY's Marisa Kendall reports that family members are wearing red-white-and-blue ribbons as they await the ceremony. Some are also wearing small pictures of the loved ones they lost on this day nine years ago. Each victim is honored by a bench engraved with his or her name that stands over a stream of flowing water. Family members are having their photographs taken while seated on the individual benches.



Update at 9:03 a.m. ET: A second moment of silence is observed marking the time that a second plane hit the towers.

Update at 8:46 a.m. ET: Mayor Michael Bloomberg says: "We will build, on the footprints of the past, the foundations of the future."

He calls for a moment of silence, marking the time that the first plane struck the World Trade Center nine years ago.

Photos: America pays tribute to ninth anniversary of 9/11

Earlier posting: A solemn 9/11 ceremony begins at Ground Zero, with the somber sounds of bagpipers and drummers.

Vice President Biden is attending the ceremony.

President Obama will be at a ceremony at the Pentagon while first lady Michelle Obama and former first lady Laura Bush will be at Shanksville, Pa.