NPR Special: 25 years after 9/11, what have we learned?

September 11th, 2026 marks 25 years since al-Qaeda attacked the United States by hijacking commercial airliners and crashing them into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

A fourth was headed for the U.S. Capitol but crashed into a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, after its passengers overpowered the hijackers.

Sources & Methods host Mary Louise Kelly revisits that day and the legacy of the attacks with key people who were in government and intelligence at the time.