US President Donald Trump has used a memorial ceremony marking the 25th anniversary of 9/11 to draw a direct line between the "War on Terror" that followed the terrorist attacks and the on-going US-Israeli war on Iran.
In an unusual move, Trump paid his respects at the Pentagon rather than attending the main ceremony in New York, where two hijacked planes struck the Twin Towers at the World Trade Centre in a series of attacks that killed 2,977 people September 11, 2001.
He used the same event to also touch on election conspiracy claims and a controversial midterm proposal, as Trump's approval rating sits near historic lows just two months out from the elections.
'That's why we fight'
In his Pentagon address, Trump drew parallels between the September 11 attack and the US' deeply unpopular war in Iran.
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"Today we renew the sacred oath that we first swore in their names a quarter of a century ago. We will never, ever forget," Trump said. "That’s why we fight today."
"We don’t have a choice. There can only be victory. We fight hard. We fight to win."
He drew links between the fight against Al-Qaeda — launched by his Republican predecessor George W. Bush after the attacks — and the ongoing US-Israeli war against Iran, now in its seventh month.
"Today we salute every member of the United States military who served in the 'war on terror'," he said.
"And we salute the service members working right now to ensure the world’s number one sponsor of terror, the Islamic Republic of Iran, will never ever have a nuclear weapon."
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth used his own remarks at the ceremony to boast about the US' success in the war.
"Over the past six months, we have laid waste to the world's most prolific state sponsor of terrorism. Our warriors have fought an Islamic theocracy that has wished us death for nearly half a century," Hegseth said.
“We’re still sending terrorists where they belong, to hell, and tankers to the bottom of the ocean where they belong. And we’re ensuring that Iran will never have a nuclear weapon."
Hegseth claimed the US had destroyed Iran's defences and controlled the Strait of Hormuz, adding that "economic pressure tightens every day" and the US "will finish this fight".
The Iran war has slid into a stalemate with Iran largely maintaining its grip on the Strait of Hormuz, and keeping oil prices high, despite sporadic exchanges of fire with the US.
Accusations of Democrat 9/11 'sympathisers'
Trump also used his speech to take aim at domestic political opponents, calling them "fanatics".
Telling the story of a firefighter killed in the attacks whose son went on to become a US Navy veteran, Trump said it showed that "we can be a nation whose heroes are not fanatics for an abstract cause".
He had used the same language two days earlier at a Republican convention for the midterm elections, saying: "With your vote in this election, you can tell these far-left lunatics and fanatics that America is not for sale to them or to anybody else".
At the same convention, Vice President JD Vance went further, accusing Democrats of sympathising with the 9/11 attackers.
"The Democrats are the party of hatred. They're the party that despises America and the people who built it. They're the party that can find sympathy for the terrorists who perpetrated 9/11," Vance said.
Pressure mounts as midterms approach
With November's midterm elections less than two months away, Trump faces mounting pressure to end the Iran war amid approval ratings that have fallen into the low-to-mid 30s.
Hours after his 9/11 speech, Trump turned to Truth Social to repeat his pledge of a $5,000 "Trump Dividend" payment to every US adult if Republicans win the midterms and retain control of Congress.
The proposal has drawn accusations of bribery from critics, along with questions over its legality.
"When I say something, I mean it! The $5,000 Dividend will happen because the People of our Country deserve it," Trump wrote, adding that the country was "taking in trillions of dollars of economic development, investment, and pure SUCCESS."
In the same hour, Trump reposted a video message on Truth Social that he had first issued on January 6, 2021, as his supporters stormed the US Capitol. In the video, Trump falsely claimed the 2020 election was "stolen from us", while telling those inside the building to "go home in peace".
It's unclear why Trump reposted the video, which carried no caption.
— With additional reporting by Agence France-Presse.
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