A flag is unfurled at the Pentagon at sunrise for an observance ceremony on Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024, to mark the 23rd anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. (Matthew Adams/Stars and Stripes)

ARLINGTON, Va. — Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Wednesday told those gathered at the National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial that for many Americans who were affected 23 years ago by the terrorist attacks on the United States, it can feel as if life has largely returned to normal.

But he said that’s not the case for those who work at the building.

“We don’t just work near a memorial. We work in a memorial,” Austin said during the annual ceremony to remember the Pentagon victims of the attack on Sept. 11, 2001. “Every day, we serve in the only surviving building struck by al-Qaida on 9/11. And every day, we carry a powerful sense of purpose.”

The Pentagon observance ceremony, which was not open to the public, allowed family members of the 184 people who lost their lives when terrorists crashed American Airlines Flight 77 into the southwest corner of the building to honor them. Those lost that day include passengers and crew members on the plane and people who worked at the Pentagon.

A memorial at the building for the fallen was dedicated exactly seven years later. Nearly 3,000 Americans were killed in the 9/11 attacks in New York City, Somerset County, Pa., and the Pentagon.

The catastrophe also altered U.S. foreign policy, domestic security practices and the mindset of many Americans who had not previously felt vulnerable to attacks by foreign extremists. Effects rippled around the world and through generations as the U.S. responded by leading the Global War on Terrorism, which included invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq. The involvement of U.S. forces in Afghanistan lasted nearly 20 years and became America’s longest war.

One hundred, eighty four people lost their lives when terrorists crashed American Airlines Flight 77 into the southwest corner of the Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001. As part of an observance ceremony on Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024, for family members, the names of the fallen were read aloud with the ringing of bells. (Matthew Adams/Stars and Stripes)

Members of the ceremonial guard on Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024, place flowers on the 184 benches with the names of those who were killed when terrorists crashed American Airlines Flight 77 into the southwest corner of the Pentagon during the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. (Matthew Adams/Stars and Stripes)

Air Force Gen. Charles “CQ” Brown, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, center, his wife Sharene Brown, left, and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024, at a wreath-laying as part of the Pentagon observance ceremony the 23rd anniversary of Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. (Matthew Adams/Stars and Stripes)

Austin said about 6% of today’s troops were in uniform on 9/11 and 21% of today’s U.S. military was born after the attacks.

“We will always strive to carry forward the values of the teammates whom we lost here 23 years ago,” he said.

The American flag was unfurled over the side of the Pentagon at sunrise on the side of the building that was struck on 9/11, an annual tradition. Before speeches were given by Austin and Air Force Gen. Charles “CQ” Brown, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the names of the 184 were read aloud with the ringing of bells.

“Today, we gather to remember the day, the loss and the determination,” Brown said.

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were scheduled to participate in a wreath-laying ceremony Wednesday at the Pentagon memorial after traveling to New York and Pennsylvania.