Obama tribute at Ground Zero
New York (CNN) — President Barack Obama joined survivors of the worst terrorist attack in U.S. history at a Manhattan firehouse today, days after American commandos killed the leader of the group behind that massacre.
Obama visited the home of Engine Company 54, which lost 15 members in the collapse of the World Trade Center’s twin towers. The president is also scheduled to attend a wreath-laying ceremony at the site where the buildings stood, now known as ground zero.
The visit comes four days after the pre-dawn raid in Pakistan that killed al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, whose followers turned hijacked jetliners filled with fuel and passengers into missiles aimed at New York and Washington. Pakistan’s armed forces acknowledged intelligence “shortcomings” regarding bin Laden, but warned that the U.S. raid that killed him has jeopardized its cooperation with American forces.