New York (CNN) -- Nine Septembers have come and gone and yet, the many days that separate America now from a chilling day in its history did not dull remembrance Saturday. Once again, the nation paused in silence to mark the times when hijacked jets crashed into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, and nearly 3,000 lives were lost in a matter of minutes. But this year, a national debate over a proposed Islamic center near ground zero hovered over the day's heart-stopping sorrow, and the president once again pleaded for the tolerance that has come to define America. Rallies in favor of and against the center were held later in the day.
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NEW: War on terrorism will continue, attorney general says
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Rallies held in favor of, against Islamic center near ground zero
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Americans mark the times when the planes crashed with solemn silence
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At the Pentagon ceremony, Obama makes a plea for religious tolerance
New York police beefed up security as @placeholder voiced their opinions Saturday afternoon at rallies over the site.