Pressure Systems edition
US Declining After Twenty-Five Years of War on Terror
September 12, 2026
What this edition shows
Marking twenty-five years since the September 11 attacks, declassified CIA archives, geopolitical retrospective analyses, and investigative reports reveal how the 'war on terror' systematically transformed domestic border security in Canada, mainstreamed European far-right politics, and institutionalized a permanent security state lexicon. From intelligence failures under successive US administrations to the normalization of repressive statecraft globally, the quarter-century legacy is one of enduring political fear and structural transformation.
Reporting and analysis behind this edition 22 sources
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'Consequences we live with': How 9/11 changed Canada's approach to our national security
Before the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Steven Backman could usually cross the Canada-US border with a simple wave.
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How 9/11 helped Israel sell its war on Palestinians to America
The 'war on terror' made Israeli repression easier to present as part of a shared struggle against a common enemy.
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What did 25 years of the “war on terror” leave behind?
US forces have bombed somewhere every year since 2001. AJLabs maps the so-called “war on terror”.
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9/11 at 25: How the ‘War on Terror’ helped mainstream Europe’s far right
The 'War on Terror' gave far-right Islamophobia legitimacy, reach and electoral force.
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What did US intelligence know before the 9/11 attacks?
The CIA have declassified documents showing US presidents were warned about Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda before 9/11.
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CIA drops dozens of declassified documents on bin Laden and al-Qaeda
A briefer told Clinton in 1998 that bin Laden’s 'preferred option is to strike the US on its own soil in Washington'.
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Former top US diplomat reveals mistakes made after 9/11 attacks
Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad describes misgivings about the US handling of the Afghanistan and Iraq wars.
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How 9/11 Made Everyone a Conspiracy Theorist
Crackpot theories were once the stuff of shortwave radio, but September 11 unleashed the Age of Alex Jones.
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Osama Bin Laden Won
The architect of the September 11 attacks dreamed of the destruction of America. In the last 25 years, his wish has come true. The post Osama Bin Laden Won appeared first on The Intercept.
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Since 9/11, Fear Has Driven Our Politics. Don’t Let It Drive The Next 25 Years.
Twenty-five years ago today I was woken up by a phone call from a close friend, who, like me, grew up in New York and, like me, was now living in California. She told me that something horrible had happened in New York and to turn on the TV. She said something about a plane […]
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Is the US more anti-Muslim now than after 9/11?
Twenty-five years after 9/11, negative perceptions of Islam persist even as Muslim political representation grows.
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‘War on terror’: How 9/11 changed the language of conflict
The events of September 11, 2001 spawned a new lexicon which effectively sanitised the erosion of human rights.
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Mamdani says 9/11 illnesses killed more than attacks did
Mamdani says 9/11 illnesses killed more than attacks did
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25 Years After 9/11, Questions About the FBI’s Pursuit of Saudi Suspects in the Case Have Only Grown
The post 25 Years After 9/11, Questions About the FBI’s Pursuit of Saudi Suspects in the Case Have Only Grown appeared first on ProPublica.
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Why 9/11 Baffles Us 25 Years Later
It’s the strategic disaster that keeps on giving.
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What the Failure to Convict the Alleged 9/11 Mastermind Reveals
Prosecutors trying to finally convict Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the September 11 attacks, got some good news and some bad news last month. The good news is that a judge set a date for Mohammed’s trial in a military court. The bad news is that the trial won’t begin until June…
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Far-right protesters rally against Islam on 9/11 anniversary
A far-right Islamophobic rally was held outside New York City Hall on the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks.
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The dystopian legal architecture of the ‘war on terror’ must be dismantled
A quarter-century after 9/11, we are still living under the security order it unleashed.
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How 9/11 conspiracy theories moved into mainstream American politics
Social media and distrust of government has helped disinformation reach increasingly large audiences.
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Twenty-five years after 9/11: an over-reliance on technology is leaving us vulnerable
It has been 25 years since the devastating attacks of September 11 2001. Amid the reflection that followed emerged the most comprehensive examination of any terrorist attack in history, the 9/11 Commission Report. Several statements in this forensic diagnosis continue to shape our understanding of t…
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Charlie Kirk Was Shot a Year Ago. The Conspiracy Theories Are More Rampant Than Ever
Experts say conspiracy theorizing about the identity and motive of Charlie Kirk’s killer will likely continue for a long time to come.
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‘Everything changed’: The human cost of 25 years of US wars
Successive wars launched after 9/11 have killed at least 4.5 million people and displaced more than 38 million others.