Historic photos show shock and sorrow of Bush administration on day of World Trade Center attacks

A series of just-released historical photos has given the world a glimpse at the shocked and sombre reactions of former US President George W Bush and his administration in the White House on the afternoon of September 11, 2001.

The photos, released by the US National Archives, show members of the Bush administration including the then-president himself, accompanied by Vice President Dick Cheney, Secretary of State Colin Powell and National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice.

Then-First Lady Laura Bush is also present.

The officials have congregated in the Emergency Operations Centre, a bunker beneath the White House.

In one photo, Mr Cheney is seen watching thick black smoke billow from the towers after the impact.

In others, members of the administration sit or stand around a conference table, looking through briefings or conversing.

The photos, taken by Mr Cheney's staff photographer, were released after a Freedom of Information Act from the Kirk Documentary Group.

The attacks on the New York twin towers claimed almost 3,000 lives and were widely referenced as the reasons behind the US invasion of Iraq in 2003.