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On September 11th 2001, Britain suffered more fatalities in the terrorist attacks than any other country in the world other than the United States.

There were 67 Britons who lost their lives that day. About 30 families who lost loved ones in the terrorist atrocities attended the sombre remembrance service at the September 11th memorial garden next to the American Embassy in Grosvenor Square, London. The memorial garden was created in remembrance of the 67 British victims.

Also in attendance were the Prime Minister David Cameron, Prince Charles, Charles's wife Camilla, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, Labour leader Ed Miliband, U.S. ambassador to the UK Louis Susman, Dame Judi Dench and London mayor Boris Johnson.

The Grosvenor Chapel is known as the 'American Church' because of its strong ties to the nearby U.S. embassy and history as a place of worship for American soldiers during World War II.

The 67 Britons killed in the suicide attacks included bankers, brokers, journalists and computer experts who had gone to work as usual on an apparently unexceptional late summer's day 10 years ago.

At the London ceremony, Deputy U.S. ambassador to Britain Barbara Stephenson lit a candle to symbolise the banishment of darkness and everlasting life. 67 white roses were also laid for each of the British victims.

A former chorister at St Paul's Cathedral was also among British victims of the tragedy. He was remembered at a moving ceremony at the famous church today.

Cantor Fitzgerald broker Robert Eaton, 37, originally from Ditchling, East Sussex, was working in the firm's offices on the 105th floor of the World Trade Center's north tower.

The close links between the financial services industries of London and New York will be marked with the ringing of a bell given to the U.S. by the City of London Corporation after the attacks.

London Mayor Boris Johnson said: 'Ten years on from 9/11 we mourn those who lost their lives and we will never forget that more Britons perished in the World Trade Center - many of them Londoners - than in any previous terrorist atrocity.'

Muslim protesters outside the American embassy in London set fire to a U.S. flag during a minute's silence held to mark the moment the first hijacked airliner hit the World Trade Center when terrorists smashed the first hijacked jet into the skyscraper.

Shamefully, members of the English Defence League (EDL), which campaigns against the rise of Islamism in England, were moved on to accommodate the Islamic anti-American protest after they tried to stage a counter-protest.

'Remembering such horrific scenes is not easy': White rose laid for each of the 67 Britons who died in 9/11 attacks

By Craig Mackenzie
11th September 2011
Daily Mail


Wreaths were laid at the 9/11 memorial in Grosvenor Square in London and the names of the 67 British victims were read out

Prime Minister David Cameron and the Prince of Wales joined relatives of British 9/11 victims today at a ceremony to mark the 10th anniversary of the attacks.

About 30 families who lost loved ones in the terrorist atrocities attended the sombre remembrance service at the September 11 memorial garden next to the American Embassy in Grosvenor Square, London.

Other guests at the moving ceremony included the Duchess of Cornwall, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, Labour leader Ed Miliband, U.S. ambassador to the UK Louis Susman, Dame Judi Dench and London mayor Boris Johnson.


Flame of hope: Fathers James Roesthal, left and Natim Nassar light a candle at Grosvenor Chapel near the U.S Embassy today


Remembrance: The moving service at the Grosvenor Square chapel in London

Earlier in the day Canon Jim Rosenthal, led another remembrance service, which was broadcast on BBC Radio 4. He said the 9/11 attacks knew 'no race, creed, gender, age or status.'

He told worshippers: 'The violence which took place in New York, Pennsylvania and Washington took its toll as nearly 3,000 people were killed in less than one hour.

'Remembering such horrific scenes is not easy. But remembrance is not static - it's a constantly growing and evolving action which gives us the opportunity to take hold of the past and transform it to reach out with grace, understanding and healing.'



The 9/11 memorial in Grosvenor Square, London, remembers the 67 British victims. Britain suffered the second-highest number of fatalities that day ten years ago.




The Grosvenor Chapel is known as the 'American Church' because of its strong ties to the nearby U.S. embassy and history as a place of worship for American soldiers during World War II.


Security check: Police officers search Grosvenor Square where a remembrance service was held for the British 9/11 victims

Deputy U.S. ambassador to Britain Barbara Stephenson lit a candle to symbolise the banishment of darkness and everlasting life.

Britain suffered more losses in the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington DC than any other country apart from America.

Relatives of about 10 UK victims have travelled to New York for the events organised by the U.S. authorities at Ground Zero, the former site of the World Trade Center.

The Britons killed in the suicide attacks included bankers, brokers, journalists and computer experts who had gone to work as usual on an apparently unexceptional late summer's day 10 years ago.

Some 2,753 died in New York, 184 in Washington and 40 in Pennsylvania. Among the dead were 343 firefighters, 37 police officers, two FBI officers and one U.S. secret service agent.

Survivor Courtney Cowart, who was nearly buried alive when the north tower of the World Trade Center collapsed, described her fears when she returned to the site for a church service five days later.


Service: The Grosvenor Chapel in London where the families of British 9/11 victims held a memorial today


In memory: An image of a dead firefighter is seen at the memorial service outside St Patrick's Cathedral in New York

She told the congregation: 'Entering the heart of darkness, I was terrified. We were dwarfed by immense wreckage looming around us. It was a landscape drained of all colour.'

Rev Nadim Nassar, director of religious educational charity the Awareness Foundation, stressed the importance of responding to 'incomprehensible evil' by focusing on actions to rebuild and repair.

He said: 'Light shines in the darkness and darkness will never overcome it.'

The close links between the financial services industries of London and New York will be marked with the ringing of a bell given to the U.S. by the City of London Corporation after the attacks.


Proud flags: British soldiers honour the 9/11 victims at a special service at St Paul's Cathedral today

The 650lb Bell of Hope, which hangs near Ground Zero in St Paul's Chapel, the rest centre for 9/11 rescue workers, will sound at 8.46am New York time, the moment of the first impact.

London Mayor Boris Johnson said: 'Ten years on from 9/11 we mourn those who lost their lives and we will never forget that more Britons perished in the World Trade Center - many of them Londoners - than in any previous terrorist atrocity.'

A former chorister at St Paul's Cathedral, killed in the 9/11 attacks was among British victims of the tragedy remembered at a moving ceremony at the church today.

Cantor Fitzgerald broker Robert Eaton, 37, originally from Ditchling, East Sussex, was working in the firm's offices on the 105th floor of the World Trade Center's north tower when terrorists smashed the first hijacked jet into the skyscraper.


Guest: The U.S. ambassador Louis Susman, centre, leaves the remembrance service at St Paul's


Innocents: Two young boys accompany their father in uniform to the ceremony where fire officers were guests

Countries with the most 9/11 victims

United States: 2,669
Britain: 67
Dominican Republic: 47
India: 41
South Korea: 28
Canada and Japan: 24
Colombia: 17
Jamaica, Mexico and Philippines: 16
Trinidad & Tobago: 14
Australia and Germany: 11
Italy: 10


His sister, Angela Ridge, read a prayer for 'all families and hearts everywhere which have been broken through acts of violence and terrorism.'

St Paul's treasurer Canon Mark Oakley, who was himself in New York at the time of the attacks, paid special tribute to Mr Eaton in his sermon.

He said: 'Two thousand, nine hundred and seventy-seven people that day were never given the opportunity to go home, including amongst them, if I may name just one, Robert Eaton, one of our former choristers here who was working in the World Trade Center that morning.'

The St Paul's service was attended by 2,000 people, including other bereaved families, 9/11 survivors, US ambassador to the UK Louis Susman, members of the American community in London and representatives of the British emergency services.

Canon Oakley recalled his 'very deep memories, some of which I wish I could forget' from being in New York on the day of the atrocities.

He described flying out of JFK Airport about a week later and seeing from the air the smouldering remains of the Twin Towers and the nearly 2 million tonnes of rubble that would take recovery workers nine months to clear.

He praised the American emergency services and hospital staff who 'worked and worked to the point of collapse' to search for the missing and treat the injured.

Amid talk of a 'broken society' following the August riots in England it is important to recall the kindnesses that emerged from the horror of 9/11, he said.

'Today we remember with hope, remember for the future, remember to live as those who died would want us to live,' he said.

Canon Oakley hit out at the protesters, including radical group Muslims Against Crusades, who vowed to disrupt the minute's silence to mark the moment when the first hijacked airliner hit the World Trade Center.

The activists organised a noisy demonstration outside the U.S. embassy in London, next door to the 9/11 memorial garden in Grosvenor Square where the bereaved relatives paid their respects.

Canon Oakley said: 'When silence is kept by the families of the lost to remember in Grosvenor Square, even if there are some who will seek to disturb them, they will never be able to take away or shake what we ultimately celebrate today - the resilience and beauty of love, and of the lives built on it.

'Where we remember this, there will always be hope.'

The Dean of St Paul's, the Rt Rev Graeme Paul Knowles, began the ceremony with a prayer for the victims of the 9/11 attacks and their loved ones.

He said: 'We come as people from many backgrounds to pray for the future security of our world, for a spirit of tolerance and mutual respect, for peace and freedom, for justice and the rule of law, that together we might go forward with confidence and hope.'

Other prayers were read by Jim Cudmore, father of 9/11 victim Neil Cudmore, 38, originally from Braintree, Essex, and David Buik from brokers BGC Partners, a spin-off company from Cantor Fitzgerald, which lost 658 employees.

The hymns included He Who Would Valiant Be, Dear Lord And Father Of Mankind, and the service finished with the British and American national anthems.


SHOUTING MUSLIM PROTESTERS SET FIRE TO U.S. FLAG

Protesters outside the American embassy set fire to a U.S. flag during a minute's silence held to mark the moment the first hijacked airliner hit the World Trade Centre.

A group of 100 radical Islamic men. including members of Muslims Against Crusades, shouted 'USA terrorists' and brandished anti-American placards.

One protester said: 'You will always face suffering, you will always face humiliation, unless you withdraw your troops from Muslim lands.'

A small group of Muslims staged a counter-demonstration nearby, holding up placards reading 'Muslims Against Extremism' and 'If You Want Sharia, Move To Saudi'.

Abdul Sallam, 41, who was waving a sign that read 'Keep The Silence', travelled down to London from his home in Glasgow to show the strength of his feelings.

He said: 'I'm a Muslim. What they're doing is bringing shame on all Muslims.This is not part of the teachings of Islam.

'Islam is all about peace, but what they want to do is hate other people.

'I am proud to be British. I love my country. All these people are doing is breaking Britain apart.'

Earlier, a group of English Defence League protesters were ordered to move on to accommodate the anti-American demonstration..

The 60-strong group briefly scuffled with police as they were forced away from their original location to a different part of Grosvenor Square.




Read more: David Cameron and Prince Charles attend 9/11 memorial service | Mail Online

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Ten years on from the atrocity, a British survivor, who was in the WTC when the planes hit, tells of the horror he encountered on 9/11.

9/11 Ten years on: I was the luckiest Brit in the Twin Towers...no one on the floors above me lived

by Andy Lines
Daily Mirror
5/09/2011


British survivor George Sleigh on September 11 2001 (pic: Splash)

BLOODY but unbowed, George Sleigh stumbles through a choking cloud of dust clutching his trusty briefcase.

The British architect had miraculously crawled out of his office after watching helplessly as American Airlines Flight 11 was flown into the North Tower 25ft above him.

George took 50 minutes to clamber down the stairs from his 91st-floor office – and he shudders when he remembers that no one any higher survived the attack.

Ten years on and now retired, the 73-year-old grandad counts his blessings every day.

He says: “I thought I was going to die.”

George reveals that he still has the canvas briefcase that went with him on his amazing journey to safety – and says it probably saved his life.

“When we washed it we discovered several slashes on it,” he says.

“There had been flying glass which hit the case instead of me.”

George vividly remembers even the smallest details of that fateful day.

He left his home in New Jersey and headed to the World Trade Center, where he worked for the American Bureau of Shipping.

The office was unusually quiet because most of the staff had relocated to Houston, Texas, leaving just 25 in New York. But the peace was about to be shattered in unimaginable horror.

George recalls: “The first thing I remember was the noise – the roar of the plane. I spun around in my chair and the plane was outside about 25ft above me.

“The only thought going through my head was ‘my, this guy is low’. He was above me to the right. It was banking slightly before it entered the building on the very side I was sitting on.

COLLAPSE

“I saw the lower part of the plane. I just covered my head and prayed.

“My office collapsed around me. But there was no fire, no smoke and all the windows on our floor were intact.

“The plane hit maybe three or four floors above me. I felt the impact on the building and with all this stuff pouring down on me I had to crawl out of the office.

“Even though there were no windows broken beside me the suspended ceiling came tumbling down.

“I crawled to the stairwells. Two were blocked but one was OK – it was slightly blocked but we managed to get around a little debris.

“I was 63 at the time but I was quite fit and walked down OK.

“I made my way out of the building when I heard a loud explosion, which I later found out was the South Tower collapsing. As I stepped outside the stairwell, the devastation was incredible – it looked like a war zone. I took off running when suddenly I was engulfed in a dust cloud.

“I thought I was going to die. The blast just caught up with me.

“There were three of us and we were definitely among the last out.

“A police officer saw me and noticed I had blood coming from my right leg and he got me to an ambulance.

“I am so lucky to be alive. I am just so glad I am still here.”



His son, Stephen, recalls: “In London I wept on the morning when I opened the papers and saw a picture of Dad and two other men.

“They looked like soldiers emerging from the battlefield caked with blood, dust, soot and water from the fire hoses.”

Two months after the attacks, George had an emotional family reunion in his hometown of Gateshead, Tyne and Wear.

George – who also escaped death when he was in the World Trade Center’s South Tower on the 106th floor during the first bombing in 1993 – has coped amazingly with the horror of the 9/11 tragedy.

He says: “I’ve had no nightmares or flashbacks. But I think about the attacks every day.”

George, who retired to Ohio eight years ago, now recounts his experiences at schools to ensure new generations are fully aware of the atrocity.

He regularly sees his 11 grandchildren and every time he hugs them he recalls how lucky he is to be alive.


Read more: 9/11 Ten years on: I was the luckiest Brit in the Twin Towers...no one on the floors above me lived - mirror.co.uk