Los Angeles, Jan 13: As firefighters continue to battle devastating wildfires in the Los Angeles area, winds are expected to intensify in the coming days, potentially further complicating rescue efforts.

According to the local officials, gusty winds and persistently dry weather are increasing extreme fire threats in the region.

Northeast wind gusts surpassed 50 miles (about 80 km) per hour on Sunday, and the strong Santa Ana winds are also forecast to pick up in the coming days.

These winds, combined with low humidity and extremely dry vegetation, will keep the fire threat in Los Angeles County at a “very high” level, said Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone.

Three active wildfires are still ravaging Los Angeles County, scorching nearly 40,300 acres (about 163 square km), according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE).

The death toll from the fires has risen to 24 as of Sunday, with eight resulting from the Palisades fire and 16 from the Eaton fire.

The two largest fires have been 11 per cent and 27 per cent contained, respectively, according to CAL FIRE.

More than 12,300 structures have been destroyed, and over 100,000 people have been evacuated from multiple disaster zones.

California Governor Gavin Newsom has deployed an additional 1,000 members of the California National Guard to Los Angeles on Sunday, bringing the total number of CalGuard service members in the region to about 2,500, according to the governor’s office.

CalGuard personnel are supporting wildfire suppression efforts, stationed at traffic control points and providing protection in some burn zones.

At least 29 people have been arrested, many for looting, since the wildfires broke out in Los Angeles last week, according to Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna.

A night-time curfew between 6 pm and 6 am is in place across the disaster zones around Pacific Palisades and Altadena, areas worst hit by the fires.

Los Angeles, Jan 13: The death toll from the ravaging wildfires in Los Angeles has risen to 24, local media reported.

Wildfires continued to rage through Los Angeles County, marking a catastrophic ‘Black Swan’ event of unprecedented scale in the history of the US’ most populous county.

Among the active fires, the Palisades Fire has burned through 19,978 acres (80.85 square km) with just six per cent containment as of Thursday night. Meanwhile, the Eaton Fire has scorched 13,690 acres (55.4 square km) and remains completely uncontained.

For residents like Michael, an accountant in Altadena where the Eaton Fire erupted, the devastation has been life-altering. He was evacuated moments before his home was engulfed by flames.

“It’s like living through Armageddon,” he said, choking back tears. “We’ve lost everything.”

According to Los Angeles Fire Chief Kristin Crowley, the wildfires, which began Tuesday night, rank among the county’s most destructive natural disasters. Over 10,000 buildings have been destroyed so far, primarily due to the Palisades and Eaton fires.

In Malibu, officials reported the first fatality from the Palisades Fire on Thursday. The cause of death remains under investigation. Malibu Mayor Doug Stewart expressed profound sorrow, offering condolences to the victim’s loved ones.

“This tragedy weighs heavily on our hearts,” he said.

Currently, firefighters are battling four major wildfires: Palisades Fire, Eaton Fire, Sunset Fire in the Hollywood Hills and Hurst Fire in Sylmar.

While some progress has been made in controlling the Eaton Fire, strong winds reaching 100 km per hour have made containing the Palisades Fire particularly challenging. Officials hope calmer weather conditions will improve containment efforts, though the National Weather Service has warned of critical fire weather persisting through Friday night.

The fires have forced the evacuation of tens of thousands of residents, with at least 70,000 homes under threat and 10,000 destroyed. Looting has been reported in some evacuation zones, leading to multiple arrests.

Dorothy, a retired school administrator who had lived in Pacific Palisades for 40 years, lost her home and everything in it.

Islamabad, Jan 11: The Indian Foreign Secretary’s meeting with the Taliban-ruled Afghanistan’s acting Foreign Minister in Dubai earlier this week has been giving sleepless nights to Pakistan’s political and military leadership with several top analysts suggesting that Islamabad should urgently reassess its aggressive approach towards Kabul.

On Wednesday, Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri met with the Acting Foreign Minister of Afghanistan, Amir Khan Muttaqi in Dubai where both discussed various issues pertaining to bilateral relations, as well as “regional developments”.

The meeting took place only two days after New Delhi had severely condemned the recent Pakistani airstrikes on Afghanistan that resulted in the death of 46 people, including several women and children.

Calls for a thorough review of Afghan strategy have grown in Pakistan after the Afghan side termed India as a “significant regional and economic partner”.

Sources told Media that closed-door meetings are being held in Islamabad as top officials delve deeper on the country’s future approach towards its much-volatile neighbour.

There’s plenty on their plate considering the worsening situation along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border and the growing mistrust between the two countries, coupled with Taliban leaders reaching out to other regional states for collaborations, especially India.

“For Pakistan, this should be a wake-up call. We should not forget that India was a major player in Afghanistan before the Taliban takeover. New Delhi had invested about $3 billion in Afghanistan for reconstruction projects and even the northern alliance members have good relations with New Delhi,” said Amir Rana, a strategic analyst.

“Even though the Indians are acting cautiously with the Taliban, things are actually moving forward. This is happening at a time when Pakistan is on the offensive against Afghanistan and our bilateral relations have nosedived tremendously,” he added.

Pakistan has called the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) a “red line” for the country and repeatedly urged the Taliban-led Afghan interim government to take decisive action against the group.

“Pakistan cannot afford a hostile neighbour to its West. One view is that instead of communicating with the people in Kabul, Islamabad can raise the TTP issue with the Taliban leadership in Kandahar as that’s where the real power originates from,” said Rana.

“A reference can be taken from a fatwa that the Taliban issued in 2023, stopping its cadres from waging a jihad inside Pakistan. The same can be used to convince the Taliban to move and relocate TTP and other anti-Pakistan groups away from its borders,” suggests the strategic expert.

It is also important to note that Pakistan’s current policy towards Afghanistan, focusing on fewer talks and a more aggressive approach, has certainly not yielded any positive result, so far.

In the past, Pakistan has had serious reservations against what it termed as India’s influence and presence inside Afghanistan. And the same concerns can quickly re-emerge if Islamabad continues with its current strategy.

“The doors of negotiations are not closed. Pakistan can work through regional states to put pressure on the Taliban to act swiftly on their counter terrorism measures. If relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan sour further, it would add to the already volatile security situation and give more maneuvering room to other countries,” said Rana.