A quarter of a century ago today, the world witnessed a devastating series of attacks on the United States that would change the lives of millions across the globe, setting off a vicious cycle of violence that continues to reverberate.

I vividly remember watching the breaking news of the 9/11 attacks on our old television, which we had only recently connected to the cable TV network in Pakistan. We had been sheltering there since the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan and could not return because of the civil war and the subsequent Taliban rule.

At first, it seemed like a horrific Hollywood movie scene unfolding in a far-away land. But moments later, when the US president, George W Bush, appeared on the screen to declare a global “war on terror”, it became real and monumental for years to come.

The Taliban were driven from Kabul, followed by the deployment of US forces, later joined by Nato allies, including Australia.

Within months, a new Afghan government was cobbled together through a marathon round of negotiations in Bonn, Germany.

Our old television continued to report the casualty figures from this “war on terror”, complementing the grim news of deaths and destruction with stories of reconstruction and efforts to nurture a nascent democracy in Afghanistan. We felt safer about returning to Kabul when my elder brother got a job with the British Broadcasting Corporation.

I began my own journalistic journey in Kabul and soon sensed the paradoxes and bitter realities of........

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