Milestones

OPENED. Qinghai-Tibet Railway, a 1,142-km, $4.2 billion engineering marvel connecting the remote Tibetan capital to the rest of China; in Lhasa. While the Chinese government has hailed the rail link as an important step in developing Tibet's economy, critics say it threatens the country's delicate environment and will erode Buddhist culture by increasing an influx of ethnic Chinese immigrants. Reaching an altitude of 5,000 meters, the railway is the world's highest; tickets for its inaugural July 1 journey sold out within 20 minutes of going on sale last Thursday.

RESIGNED. Mari Alkatiri, 57, Prime Minister of East Timor,...