By the time United Airlines Flight 175 sliced into the second tower, news reporters and editors around the world knew they were facing the most monumental story of their lifetime. The Sep. 11 attacks forever changed the world, and put the powers of modern journalism, from real-time video coverage to deep news analysis (on deadline), to the test like never before.

With events unfolding on that Tuesday morning in New York and Washington, newspapers around the world could go to print that evening with special editions for Sep. 12 that offered the proverbial "first draft of history" on their respective front pages. News magazines followed suit with tragically iconic covers. TIME magazine's lead writer Nancy Gibbs recently recalled the unique pressure of producing a special issue in 24 hours.

TIME front cover from September 14, 2001 - ©TIME

"It was a test of speed as much as anything else," Gibbs recalled. "It was a complete all-hands. Normally we would have a formal system whereby people sent files into a central information management system; everyone just emailed me. I probably had a thousand emails. It was the writing equivalent of putting a jigsaw puzzle together. Everyone had a different piece of the puzzle."

In France, Le Monde's top editor Jean-Marie Colombani penned a front-page editorial echoing JFK at the Berlin Wall, which declared that in the face of such a heinous attack: Nous sommes tous américains. ("We are all Americans.")

Le Monde front page from September 13, 2001 - ©Le Monde

For a left-leaning, U.S.-skeptic French daily, it captured the spirit connecting the whole world that fateful day. Here below are images of front pages and magazine covers around the world that carries us back to that collective moment of horror turned to grief, newfound wells of courage mixed with a deep and sudden vulnerability:

U.S. - The New York Times

The New York Times - 12/09/2001

The Washington Post

The Washington Post - 12/09/2001

USA Today

USA Today - 09/12/2011

The San Francisco Examiner

San Francisco The Examiner - 09/12/2001

The Post-Crescent

The Post-Crescent - 09/12/2001

TIME Magazine

TIME - 09/14/2001

The New Yorker

The New Yorker - 09/24/2001

France - Le Monde

"America struck, the world terrified" Le Monde - 09/13/2001

Le Parisien

Le Parisien - 09/12/2001

Libération

Libération - 09/12/2001

Charlie Hebdo

09/19/2001

Canada - The Globe and Mail

The Globe and Mail - 09/12/2001

United Kingdom - The Guardian

The Guardian - 09/12/2001

The Daily Telegraph

The Daily Telegraph - 09/12/2001

Spain - El País

El País - 09/12/2001

El Mundo

El Mundo - 09/12/2001

Italy - Il Mattino

Il Mattino - 09/12/2001

Sweden - Aftonbladet

Aftonbladet - 09/12/2001

Finland - Tucun Sanomat

Tucun Sanomat - 09/12/2001

Israel - Maariv

Maariv 9/12/2001

Turkey - Hürriyet

Hürriyet - 09/12/2001

UK, Pan-Arab - Al Hayat

Al Hayat - 09/12/2001

Lebanon - An Nahar

An Nahar - 09/12/2001

Japan - Asahi Shimbun

Asahi Shimbun - 09/12/2001

Korea - Chosun Ilbo

Chosun Ilbo - 09/12/2001

Argentina - Clarín

Clarín (special edition) - 09/11/2001

Germany - Die Welt

Die Welt - 09/12/2001

Germany - Der Spiegel

Der Spiegel - 09/15/2001

Bulgaria - 24 Chasa

24 Chasa - 09/12/2001

Brazil - Folha de São Paulo

Folha de São Paulo - 09/12/2001

Australia - The Sydney Morning Herald

The Sydney Morning Herald - 09/12/2001