The victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the US were remembered at a special ceremony in The Hague on Sunday, attended by prime minister Mark Rutte and the US ambassador to the Netherlands, Fay Hartog-Levin.

In his speech, in English, Rutte talked of ‘that dark day when the unthinkable happened, when almost 3,000 people from more than 90 countries lost their lives in a series of cowardly terrorist attacks’.
‘The Netherlands shared that determination [to eradicate terrorism] from day one, because the democratic values that we share must never be surrendered to the forces of blind hate and fundamentalism,’ Rutte said.
‘This is the reason the United States and the Netherlands, together with other countries, continue in our efforts to safeguard peace and security. To combat terrorism, and to promote the freedom and democratic rights of people worldwide.’
‘The harsh reality is that terrorism was not defeated immediately after 9/11, as later attacks on Bali, London and Madrid have shown,’ Rutte continued. ‘But we are gaining ground, step by step. Because in the end, tyranny and terrorist violence cannot triumph over people resolved to shape their own destiny.’
For the full speech, click here