Donald Trump has been criticised for airing his controversial views on everything from LGBT rights to climate change, and the terrorist attacks on America of September 2001 are no exception.

From his days as a real estate tycoon in New York to running a campaign for political office, the former reality TV star has whipped up controversy on several occasions surrounding an atrocity that killed close to 3,000 people.

And as the under-fire president readies himself for the latest 9/11 commemorations, the litany of controversial remarks will come under fresh scrutiny.

11 September 2001

“40 Wall Street actually was the second-tallest building in downtown Manhattan… And now it’s the tallest.”

The day the Twin Towers fell, real estate businessman Mr Trump was speaking to radio station WWOR when he veered off to brag about his nearby 71-storey skyscraper, claiming the title of highest building in Lower Manhattan.

Shortly after the attack, Mr Trump claimed $150,000 from the government to cover “rent loss” and “repairs”. The money had originally been set aside for small businesses in the area.

US Congress overrides Obama's veto on 9/11 bill

11 September 2013

“I would like to extend my best wishes to all, even the haters and losers, on this special date, September 11th.”

Mr Trump marked the anniversary on Twitter in 2013. He later deleted the tweet, but inexplicably kept his reposting of the original tweet.

November 2015

“I watched when the World Trade Center came tumbling down, and I watched in Jersey City, New Jersey where thousands and thousands of people were cheering as that building was coming down.”

The then-presidential candidate said at a rally in Birmingham, Alabama, that people had celebrated the disaster across the water from the Twin Towers. He later repeated his claim to ABC News host George Stephanopoulos, adding that the cheers came from areas of New Jersey with “large Arab populations”. The claims were denied by Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop and police.

February 2016

“The World Trade Center came down during the reign of George Bush. He kept us safe? That is not safe. That is not safe”

At a primary season debate, candidate Mr Trump took his former rivals Marco Rubio and Jeb Bush to task for defending former President George W Bush.

He added: “The World Trade Center came down because Bill Clinton didn’t kill Osama bin Laden when he had the chance to kill him. And George Bush — by the way, George Bush had the chance, also, and he didn’t listen to the advice of his CIA.”

February 2016

“I lost hundreds of friends in 9/11.”

Mr Trump insisted he knew many of the people working in the Twin Towers, but never named a single person. The president would have had to have known about one in 10 of the victims if his claim of knowing “hundreds” of the 2,996 victim was true.

March 2016

“Thanks sweetie. That’s nice”

When Mr Trump was promoting the opening of his new hotel in Washington DC while on the campaign trail, a woman in the crowd asked him if he would hire veterans and 9/11 survivors. He invited her to the stage, promising he would give her a job. She hugged him and kissed him on the cheek, and he replied, “Thanks sweetie. That’s nice.”

August 2016

“Those people that knocked down the World Trade Centre most likely under the Trump policy wouldn’t have been here to knock down the World Trade Centre, just so you understand.”

At another campaign event, he insisted he would have been smarter on terrorism than his predecessor. Fifteen of the 19 hijackers on 9/11 were citizens of Saudi Arabia – a country omitted from the list of countries included in his controversial travel ban.

April 2017

“It’s the highest [ratings] for ‘Deface the Nation’ since the World Trade Center. Since the World Trade Center came down. It’s a tremendous advantage.”

In pictures: President Bush’s immediate response to 9/11 Show all 12 1 /12 In pictures: President Bush’s immediate response to 9/11 In pictures: President Bush’s immediate response to 9/11 11 September 2001 President Bush was visiting Emma E Brooker Elementary School in Sarasota, Florida as news of the attack on the World Trade Center broke In pictures: President Bush’s immediate response to 9/11 11 September 2001 The president and his staff, including Press Secretary Ari Fleischer (L) were then brought to a holding room at the school, where he prepared to address the nation In pictures: President Bush’s immediate response to 9/11 11 September 2001 President Bush was then rushed onto Air Force One and was flown to Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana. He watched television coverage of the attacks from his office on the plane In pictures: President Bush’s immediate response to 9/11 11 September 2001 President Bush talks on the telephone at the General Dougherty Conference Center at Barksdale Air Force Base In pictures: President Bush’s immediate response to 9/11 11 September 2001 President Bush is seen with his senior adviser Karl Rove at Barksdale Air Force Base In pictures: President Bush’s immediate response to 9/11 11 September 2001 The president with White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card at Barksdale Air Force Base. Before leaving the base, the president held a press conference at which he said, “Make no mistake: The United States will hunt down and punish those responsible for these cowardly acts” In pictures: President Bush’s immediate response to 9/11 11 September 2001 The president was consoled by Lt Col Cindy Wright of the White House Military Office aboard Air Force One. After leaving Louisiana, the president was flown to Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska before he headed back to Washington In pictures: President Bush’s immediate response to 9/11 11 September 2001 President Bush arrived at the White House Presidential Emergency Operations Center around 7 pm. Here he is shown with his wife, First Lady Laura Bush, Vice President Cheney and National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice In pictures: President Bush’s immediate response to 9/11 11 September 2001 At 8:30 pm, the president addressed the nation from the White House. In his speech, he set the tone for the wars to come in Afghanistan and Iraq In pictures: President Bush’s immediate response to 9/11 11 September 2001 “I’ve directed the full resources for our intelligence and law enforcement communities to find those responsible and bring them to justice,” the president said. “We will make no distinction between the terrorists who committed these acts and those who harbour them” In pictures: President Bush’s immediate response to 9/11 11 September 2001 The president’s speech on the teleprompter In pictures: President Bush’s immediate response to 9/11 11 September 2001 Immediately following the speech, the president had a national security meeting with Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, Vice President Dick Cheney, National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice, White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card and others

In an interview about his first 100 days in the White House with the Associated Press, Donald Trump boasted that his “ratings” on cable network shows like on Fox and CBS’s Face the Nation were higher than those for broadcasts of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.