20 Rarely-Seen Images From September 11th, 2001

Wyn Delano
WMAL.com

WASHINGTON (WMAL) — The U.S. Department of Defense, in honor of the September 11th anniversary has released 20 rarely seen images from that infamous day.

As the nation looks back 16 years later, iconic images often come to the forefront. These 20 photos show different, perhaps more intimate stories of the attacks that claimed nearly 3,000 lives on American soil.

Click through to the gallery below to view all 20 images:

aerial-view-537x350An aerial view of the damage at the Pentagon two days after Sept. 11, 2001. On that day, five members of al-Qaida, a group of fundamentalist Islamic Muslims, hijacked American Airlines Flight 77, a Boeing 757-200, from Dulles International Airport just outside Washington and flew the aircraft and its 64 passengers into the side of the Pentagon. (Air Force Photo by Tech. Sgt. Cedric H. Rudisill)