In Cyprus, Cyprus Mail newsroom recalls work on the day of the September 11 attacks
In Cyprus, journalists at the Cyprus Mail recalled how, on September 11, 2001, they urgently changed an already planned edition after reports of attacks in the United States. The newsroom had no smartphones or social media at the time, and the main sources of breaking information were television, phone calls, and news agency feeds.
Reports came in gradually
Jean Christou, then the publication's chief reporter, said that at about 15:50 Cyprus time, the local news editor told colleagues about a plane that had hit the towers. At first, newsroom staff assumed it was a small plane, but after the broadcast of the second plane's impact, all previous plans for the edition were set aside.
Katie Turner, who worked on world news, recalled that the first urgent report arrived via Reuters. Information appeared in separate fragments, so the scale of the events was not immediately clear. Footage showing US President George Bush being hurriedly led out of a school in Florida reinforced the realization of the seriousness of the situation.
More current news is available on the UA.News Telegram channel Telegram.
The edition was prepared until morning
The front page of Cyprus Mail dated September 12 featured photographs of the towers engulfed in flames and the headline “Terror jets hit US”. The newspaper reported on the attack on the Pentagon, the crash of another plane near Pittsburgh, and US suspicions regarding Osama bin Laden. According to the publication, the final death toll was 2,977 people.
Layout staff member Toulla said that the printing house agreed to accept materials until 04:00. The planned front page and a significant part of the issue had to be replaced. Finished pages were output onto film, processed in a darkroom, and then sent to the printing house by taxi.
In subsequent editions, Cyprus Mail wrote that the US president called the event an act of war. The newspaper also reported on attempts by the US Embassy to locate Cypriots in New York and the cancellation of planned talks between Cypriot President Glafcos Clerides and UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan.
