The world 25 years after 9/11
Mbongeni Mguni | Friday September 11, 2026 10:06
Some of those who were in the US at the time, or shortly thereafter, shared their stories with Mmegi.
Bongi D D M Radipati – Mmegi essayist
“The weather on the morning of 9/11/2001 was a complete contrast with the tragedy happening in downtown Manhattan. The day was a typical autumn (fall) day in NYC.
“It was cloudlessly clear but crisp. It was cold but exceptionally beautiful and like NYC itself, beckoning and daring.
“The cruel irony of it was that whilst I lived about 13km or eight miles away from the World Trade Center’s twin towers, the tragedy that was unfolding there was remarkably visible from my apartment in Upper West Side Manhattan.
“In this part of NYC, we were used to seeing more northern New Jersey than the Wall Street area, which from that end is obscured by blocks of skyscrapers in midtown Manhattan.
“At first, when the first airplane hit the first tower, I was already outside after a run in Riverside Park. I froze with disbelief and horror and shock and sadness. What is happening here, I wondered quietly to myself. “When the second airplane hit the other tower, a moment later, I realised that this was not a freak accident. I reckoned that it must be something else, probably something worse and unimaginable. But what was it, I kept muttering to myself.”
Radipati remembers the Twin Towers before they fell.
“The memories of NYC, its Wall Street area, the twin towers, the fulfilling life I led there and the pulsating energy of the city will forever be a blessing to me.”
Tebelelo Seretse – Former
Cabinet Minister and Botswana’s
Ambassador to the US (2011 to 2015)“I wasn’t there during the event. However, having been in Cabinet between 1999 and 2004, I went to the US about six months after the event.
“I recall airport security being very tight. At the time when we went in, you had to take off your shoes and undergo an intense search.
“Everything was delayed, and it took an hour for us to get off the plane, because these attacks had shocked them.
“The attacks showed that in this world, you cannot manage on your own and you need solidarity with other allies. “Today, the US has an Africa policy that may not recognise individual countries, but at the time, especially with AGOA, they realised the differences and the need for friends and solidarity.”
Within the US as well, Seretse saw strong solidarity and resolve.
“Arriving in the US at that time, I had never seen them so united and solid behind their country.
“I don’t think in their history they were ever that united.” “Almost every single vehicle was flying the US flag. Each and every one.
“Also, all the houses had the flag, showing their pride and solidarity.” “They did not discriminate, and once they vetted you in and saw that you were not an enemy, they would welcome that solidarity with them.”
Christopher Gunning – US
Embassy in Botswana Chargé d’affaires “I was in Denton, Texas on 9/11. At the time I was working towards my Master’s in International Relations from the University of North Texas. I woke up late because I wasn’t feeling well and decided I would stay home. My roommates had already left our apartment, and I was alone when I turned on the TV and saw the horrific images of smoke billowing out of the North Tower.
“Remember, this was the time before the internet and social media dominated the news cycle, so TV is where I got most of my news. I recall sitting there for what seemed like an eternity, and I was compulsively changing the channel to find whichever news outlet had the most knowledge of what was happening.
“I spent hours alone watching the news and collapse of the towers trying to understand what was happening. Logically, I understood, but emotionally I was unable to fully process the events and the enormity of the loss of life.
Gunning remembers the silence in the sky that day.“I lived along the northern flight path to Dallas/Ft Worth airport. Every day and night I would hear the roar of aircraft landing and taking off. Normally, that sound was background noise to my life. “Not that day. On 9/11, I remember the skies being ominously silent because all of the air traffic was grounded.
“That silence was unnerving. It was a powerful statement that things were not okay. The situation became especially eerie because at one point I saw and heard a military fighter aircraft streak across the sky. “It was the combination of the pervasive silence and the sight of the fighter aircraft that made things feel very personal, even though the attacks were thousands of kilometres away.”
The events of the day hit a particularly personal note.
“My mother passed away less than a year before the attacks. I recall being thankful that she wasn’t with me to see what was going on.
“She was, at her core, a deeply kind person and the images on the TV that day would have been very difficult for her.
“I miss her with a powerful sadness every day but am thankful she did not have to experience 9/11.” Twenty-five years later, Gunning says the US is stronger and more resolute than ever.
“No one should underestimate the resolve and strength of the United States and Americans. We recovered from the 9/11 tragedy and united as a people to rebuild.
“The same determination that was on display as firefighters and volunteers rescued hundreds of victims from the rubble left behind in the attacks in Washington, DC and New York remains evident in the American spirit today.
“The United States has faced every kind of tragedy, and not only endured, but built back stronger.
“Even better, our relationships and partnerships with countries like Botswana have only deepened since 9/11.
“Our enduring ties and shared determination towards peace, security, and prosperity make our two nations and communities strong.”
Exactly 25 years ago on this day, the world was shaken by the 9/11 terror attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people and overhauled global politics. MBONGENI MGUNI speaks to a few of those who were in the U.S on the day or shortly thereafter