President Obama sent Congress a plan on Tuesday to close the United States military prison at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, his latest attempt to deliver on an unfulfilled promise of his presidency, which faces near-certain rejection by Congress. The prison has come to symbolize the darker side of the nation’s antiterrorism efforts, but the series of steps that Mr. Obama outlined at the White House were as much an acknowledgment of the constraints binding him during his final year in office as they were a practical blueprint for transferring prisoners.

New Jersey Congressman Tom MacArthur announced on Tuesday that his legislation to designate the 9/11 Memorial as a national memorial has passed the U.S. House of Representatives. MacArthur introduced the National 9/11 Memorial at the World Trade Center Act that will authorize a grant to help secure the memorial site. More.

The September 11th Victim Compensation Fund said it has offered financial support to nearly 6,000 victims’ families and first responders who became sick because of 9/11 in the past year. An annual report released by the VCF Tuesday says that’s nearly triple the number of payments the fund awarded the year before. More.

Congressman Tom MacArthur today announced that his legislation to protect and preserve the National September 11 Memorial at the World Trade Center in New York has passed out of the Natural Resources Committee. The National 9/11 Memorial at the World Trade Center Act will designate the 9/11 outdoor Memorial Plaza as a National Memorial. More.

On Sept. 11, 2001, NYPD Lt. Theresa Tobin was caught in the collapse of the South Tower. As debris fell, shards of glass sprayed into her back and a piece of concrete pierced her special ballistic helmet before lodging in her skull. Miraculously, Tobin, now a deputy chief, was among the fortunate first responders who survived. More.

After St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church in Lower Manhattan was destroyed on Sept. 11, 2001, by the collapse of the World Trade Center nearby, the Rev. John D. Romas held his small congregation together as its worship services moved to Brooklyn and instilled in his parishioners the hope that they would live to see their church rebuilt. More.

When a doctor examines a survivor of the Sept. 11 attacks, she’s likely to ask a certain set of questions. She’s look­ing for the telltale afflictions triggered by the toxic dust of the World Trade Center. Lung disease, stomach com­plaints, sinus problems and post-traumatic stress syndrome are common, particularly among first-responders who spent weeks downtown after 9/11. More.

Residents, architects and students packed into the municipal room at Borough Hall on Jan. 13 to discuss how and where to construct a memorial for the those who perished during the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 using a piece of steel from the World Trade Center. More.