Fears of a new terrorist strike keep American nerves on edge

THE United States will pause today in sombre remembrance of the September 11 terrorist strikes that led the country into an open-ended global war against a largely invisible enemy.

Although the past two years have allowed a thin protective skin to grow around the physical and psychological trauma inflicted by the attacks, fears of a new terrorist strike and concerns over Iraq have kept American nerves on edge.

The national focus, as it was for the first anniversary, will be a ceremony at Ground Zero in New York, the site of the World Trade Center, where two airliners hijacked by followers of Osama bin Laden slammed into the Twin Towers, killing nearly 2,800 people.