BEIJING: China’s sprawling high-speed rail network passed 50,000 kilometres (31,000 miles) in total operating distance with the opening of a new line on Friday, state media reported.

The country has the world’s largest rail network — one-fifth longer than the circumference of the earth.

The trip begins in the city of Xi’an — home to China’s famed Terracotta Warriors — and ends in Yan’an to its north, state broadcaster CCTV said. Both cities are in northern China’s Shaanxi province.

Some homes were demolished, and displaced residents would receive 5,000 yuan ($700) per household to relocate, local authorities said in 2020 when construction began.

China’s rail network has expanded by around 32% compared to 2020, state-owned China Railway added Friday in a statement.

The Xi’an-Yan’an line spans a total of 299 kilometres and the shortest trip takes 68 minutes, CCTV said.

The C9309 train runs at 350 kilometres (217 miles) per hour, outpacing Japan’s Shinkansen, which has a top speed of 320 kilometres (200 miles) per hour.

Beijing has also been financing railways in other Asian countries under its Belt and Road Initiative, which funds infrastructure projects globally.

WASHINGTON: Pro-Khalistan Sikhs For Justice (SFJ) has denounced what it described as an “unacceptable escalation” after a call for violence against US President Donald Trump was made by a speaker at an event hosted by ITServe Alliance, drawing applause from some attendees.

A video from an H1B conference in Seattle hosted by ITServe Alliance, the largest H1B advocacy group in the US, has sparked outrage after members mocked Americans, threatened physical violence against the US president and boasted of having more political power than average Americans.

SFJ General Counsel Gurpatwant Singh Pannun said the remarks, which SFJ claims were later amplified online by accounts aligned with Hindutva ideology, constituted a direct challenge to US democratic norms and presidential security.

“A violent threat against the President of the United States is a line that must never be crossed,” Pannun said in a statement. “We are urging accountability for any attempt to normalise political violence on American soil.”

“This crossed a line — a violent threat against the President of the United States from supporters of Modi’s Hindutva extremist ideology is a direct challenge to American sovereignty,” said Pannun. “Modi’s Indo-American H-1B network must be held accountable for normalising political violence inside the US,” the statement emphasised.

SFJ said it has filed a formal complaint with the US Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, requesting a federal investigation into the incitement and its dissemination online. As of publication, federal authorities had not publicly confirmed an investigation.

SFJ urged President Trump to publicly pose what it termed a “loyalty question” concerning Indo-American political allegiances in a conflict involving India under Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

He said: “Will Indo-Americans of Hindu faith bear arms for the United States in a war against Modi’s India?’ The American public has a right to know where the loyalties of Indo-Americans lie — with the US Constitution or with Modi’s extremist ideology.”

“There is no place on American soil for Modi’s violent Hindutva ideology. And if required, Hindutva extremism will be crushed under the full force of the US Constitution,” the SFJ leader said.

SFJ reiterated that the Khalistan Referendum is, in its words, a peaceful and democratic campaign advocating Sikh self-determination in India’s Punjab region. Pannun added that, in a US–India conflict initiated by Washington, pro-Khalistan Sikhs would support the United States.

A helicopter crashed on Tanzania’s Mount Kilimanjaro, killing five people, the civil aviation authority said on Thursday, while local media reported that the aircraft was on a medical rescue mission.

Those killed were identified as a guide and a doctor — both Tanzanians — the Zimbabwean pilot and two tourists from the Czech Republic, the Tanzania National Parks said in a statement.

The helicopter crashed near the mountain’s Barafu Camp on Wednesday, Tanzania’s Civil Aviation Authority said in a statement.

The Mwananchi newspaper and East Africa TV, citing Kilimanjaro region’s head of police, reported that the helicopter was on a medical rescue mission.

Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa’s highest peak, is nearly 6,000 metres (20,000 ft) above sea level.

The crash happened between 4,670 and 4,700 metres, Mwananchi reported.

Around 50,000 tourists climb Kilimanjaro annually.