9/11 Attacks

Were the Twin Towers almost empty when the 9/11 attack took place on September 11, 2001? No, that's not true: The recycled conspiracy theory contradicts a large body of evidence that proves the opposite, including government documents, medical examiner's reports and video and photo materials shot by journalists and filmmakers at Ground Zero on the day of tragedy. The claim…

Did children read words predicting the 9/11 attack "moments before" planes hit the World Trade Center as then-President George W. Bush sat with the children in a Sarasota, Florida, schoolroom? No, that's not true: An online claim to that effect distorts the facts by manipulating the timeline and changing the content of the lesson to fit the narrative. The claim…

Did then-U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld report that $2.3 trillion was missing the day before the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks? No, that's not true: Rumsfeld gave a speech on September 10, 2001 about the bureaucratic red tape in the U.S. government and his plans to update processes. He remarked that it was difficult to track financial transactions within…

Does a "rare Pentagon impact video" show that something other than a commercial plane hit the building on September 11, 2001? No, that's not true: The video shown has been digitally edited to show an object crashing into the building. It is a stock footage video of the Pentagon that is easily found on the internet. The 9/11 Commission Report…

Was the second plane to hit the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, a military plane? No, that's not true: The plane that hit the south tower was United Airlines Flight 175, a commercial plane. The 9/11 Commission Report described "The Hijacking of United 175" with eyewitness accounts including phone calls made from the plane. The claim was inferred…

Does a news report from CNN that aired on September 11, 2001, prove that a plane didn't crash into the Pentagon on that day? No, that's not true: There is plenty of evidence that a plane crashed into the Pentagon on 9/11, and the news report used to justify the claim has been clarified by the journalist who made the…

Was the plane from United Airlines Flight 93 not at the reported crash site near Shanksville, Pennsylvania? No, that's not true: The hijacked plane crashed into the ground on September 11, 2001, almost upside down at a speed of up to 580 miles per hour, exploding, according to the National Park Service website for the Flight 93 National Memorial. Wreckage…

Does a video showing an explosion at the World Trade Center's South Tower on September 11, 2001, but no aircraft, prove no planes were involved in the 9/11 attacks? No, that's not true: Video and images from other angles show the planes hitting or about to hit the Twin Towers. In addition, The 9/11 Commission Report by the National Commission…

Did George W. Bush admit that explosives were used in 9/11? No, that's not true: The claim relies on footage from a 2006 press conference. The video was edited and his comments were misconstrued. Bush was talking about explosives in the context of other plots and planned attacks, not the 9/11 attacks. The claim appeared in an article (archived here)…

Did Israel mint a shekel coin 33 years before the 9/11 attacks that included images of a plane crashing into New York's World Trade Center twin towers? No, that's not true: The image included in a meme implying prior knowledge of the 9/11 attacks by the Israeli government is not of a coin, but a medallion produced privately to commemorate…