US President Barack Obama commemorates 9/11, warns of ‘evolved’ threats

US President Barack Obama participates in a moment of silence during a ceremony to mark the 15th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks in front of the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, September 11, 2016. (AFP photo)

US President Barack Obama has memorialized the September 11, 2001 attacks by warning that America is faced with an “evolved threat" of terrorism.

Speaking at the Pentagon on Sunday, Obama said that terror groups like al-Qaeda and Daesh (ISIL) pose a direct threat against American people, despite sustaining “devastating blows.”

“Fifteen years into this fight, the threat has evolved,” he said. “Hateful ideologies urge people in their own country to commit unspeakable violence.”

“Groups like al Qaeda, like ISIL, know that we will never be able -- they will never be able to defeat a nation as great and as strong as America.  So, instead, they've tried to terrorize in the hopes that they can stoke enough fear that we turn on each other and that we change who we are or how we live,” he added.

The American head of state then pointed to the “unspeakable violence” that has hit the US, making a reference to terror attacks in Boston, San Bernardino and Orlando over the past years.

Obama urged Americans to stay true to their “ideals” and “reaffirm our character as a nation,” saying that was the best way to honor the victims of the attack.

“We know that our diversity, our patchwork heritage, is not a weakness,” he said. “This is the America that was attacked that September morning. This is the America that we must remain true to.”

Obama spoke as ceremonies were being held on Sunday across the country to remember the 2,983 people who were killed during the attacks.

This year’s ceremonies have been overshadowed by a controversial bill by Congress that allows relatives of the victims to sue Saudi Arabia for compensation.

US officials assert that the attacks were carried out by al-Qaeda terrorists but many experts have raised questions about the official account.

They believe that rogue elements within the US government orchestrated or at least encouraged the 9/11 attacks in coordination with Israeli and Saudi Arabian officials to accelerate the US war machine and advance the Zionist agenda.

Ties between Saudi officials and terrorists behind the 9/11 attacks were exposed when US lawmakers released 28 secret pages of a congressional investigation.

Several suspicious connections were outlined in the report between the 19 hijackers, 15 of whom were Saudi citizens, and the monarchy’s officials, though no definitive comment were made about the Saudi involvement.

Saudi Arabia has strongly opposed the legislation. It has threatened to sell off $750 billion in American assets if it becomes law.