The United States was jolted on this day, 19 years ago, when terrorists affiliated to the Al-Qaeda hijacked passenger airliners and rammed them into the World Trade Centre (WTC) Twin Towers and Pentagon complex. The "deadliest terror attack" left 2,977 people dead over 25,000 injured. For generations to come, 9/11 would remain as the date scarred into the history of modern America. 9/11 Quotes and Sayings: Heartfelt Memorial Messages and Images to Remember September 11 Attacks’ Victims on Patriot Day.

Even as the American polity and the world at large holds anti-US extremists squarely responsible for the attacks, theories challenging the mainstream narrative continues to circulate in the dark corners of the internet. Here are the five prominent conspiracy theories around the September 11, 2001 attacks.

What Led To The Collapse Of WTC towers?

The most well-known conspiracy theory relates to the collapse of the twin tower of the World Trade Centre and WTC 7. The 47-storey WTC 7 collapsed seven hours after the two towers fell. Conspiracy theorists allege that explosives were planted at the WTC twin tower and Tower 7, and demolitions were controlled.

They believe the crash and subsequent fires didn't lead to the collapse of towers. However, the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States, also known as the 9/11 Commission, accepted that the impacts of jet aircraft at high speeds in combination with subsequent fires, not controlled demolition, led to the collapse of the Twin Towers.

'Jews Knew About 9/11 Attacks'

Conspiracy theorists also allege that Jewish and Israeli workers and occupants knew about the 9/11 attack and were warned the day before, supposedly by the Mossad (the Israeli intelligence agency) to stay away. One of the most widely circulated claims is that not a single Jew had been killed in the 9/11 attacks. Similarly, some claim that all Arab taxi drivers were absent in downtown Manhattan that morning.

On September 17, the Lebanese Hezbollah-owned satellite television channel Al-Manar claimed that 4,000 Israelis who worked at the World Trade Center “remarkably did not show up in their jobs”. However, this was a false claim. According to an article in the Wall Street Journal published on October 11, 2001, roughly 1,700 people had listed the religion of a person missing in the WTC attacks; approximately 10 per cent were Jewish. Catch more details here - The 4,000 Jews Rumor.

No Planes Theory

Morgan O Reynolds, who is the former director of the Criminal Justice Center at the National Center for Policy Analysis, claimed that no planes were used in the 9/11 attacks. Reynolds claims it is physically impossible that the United Airlines Flight 175 and American Airlines Flight 11 could have penetrated the steel frames of the WTC towers.

David Shayler, a former Mi6 officer, said: "the only explanation is that they were missiles surrounded by holograms made to look like planes". However, plane wreckages were recovered. Multiple witnesses also saw the plane strike the Pentagon.

'LIHOP (Let It Happen on Purpose)'

This section of conspiracy theorists, similar to those who alleged that Pearl Harbour attack was an internal ploy, suggest that the US Intelligence and administration officials were alarmed about the plane being hijacked by Al-Qaeda personnel but decided not to intervene.

This, they claim, is the best possible reason to explain why the US defence system could not intercept four passenger planes that were hijacked. Their allegations, however, appear to be completely baseless if read along with the 9/11 investigation report.

'MIHOP (Made It Happen On Purpose)'

The conspiracy theorists of this group claim that the US administration was hand-in-glove with al-Qaeda in carrying out the terror strike. They claimed that the Intelligence department and other agencies, possibly under the directive of White House top brass, collaborated with the extremist group to reap domestic political dividend and launch a geopolitical project to target adversarial nations under the garb of "war on terror". The allegations could not be substantiated.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 11, 2020 09:59 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).