Devastating wildfires continued to rage across different parts of Los Angeles County on Saturday, claiming at least 11 lives, with 13 still missing, according to local officials.
The wildfires have led to widespread disruptions including power outages, resident evacuation and closures of different institutions since the blazes erupted on Tuesday.
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California wildfires cause at least 11 deaths with 13 still missing
California wildfires cause at least 11 deaths with 13 still missing
California wildfires cause at least 11 deaths with 13 still missing
California wildfires cause at least 11 deaths with 13 still missing
An investigation into the cause of the fire is under way.
Six wildfires have been burning across Los Angeles County since Tuesday, scorching and destroying nearly 10,000 structures. Currently, around 153,000 LA residents are under evacuation orders, and 57,000 structures are at risk.
According to NBC reports on Saturday, as of 10:00 EST that day, data from a U.S. power tracking website showed that over 160,000 households in California were still without power due to the fire.
According to the local fire department, the Palisades fire, one of the biggest, is currently at 11 percent containment.
Worsened by winds, the fire rapidly spread eastward on Friday night, leading to massive evacuations, public facilities shutdowns and school closures.
According to CNN, two emergency evacuation alerts were mistakenly sent to residents across Los Angeles County on Thursday and Friday. These alerts have been confirmed as technical errors by local authorities.
California wildfires cause at least 11 deaths with 13 still missing
California wildfires cause at least 11 deaths with 13 still missing
California wildfires cause at least 11 deaths with 13 still missing
California wildfires cause at least 11 deaths with 13 still missing
Iran will never negotiate its missile program with the United States and will vigorously fight and prevail in any conflict initiated by the U.S., said Seyed Mohammad Marandi, a professor of English literature and orientalism at the University of Tehran.
The U.S. has been calling on Iran to curb its missile program over the past months, a demand Tehran has firmly rejected.
On Saturday, Iran's Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said that the country's missile program is "never negotiable."
In an interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN), Prof. Marandi reiterated that negotiating the missile program is "out of the question" as Iran's military capability is a crucial defense against potential U.S. aggression.
"Negotiating the missile program is a red line. It will not happen today; it will not happen next month, and it will not happen next year. That is out of the question. The Americans would like to see such a thing happen, but it is impossible. What has protected Iran from U.S. aggression is its military capability. We have no illusions about what the United States would do if it could do it. And what prevents it from attacking us is our missile and drone capabilities, which we are going to strengthen rather than pull back on," said Marandi.
Marandi emphasized that while Iran does not seek war and has never initiated conflict with the U.S. or Israel, an attack from the U.S. would lead to a fierce fight for survival, given Iran's strong defenses in the Persian Gulf.
"What Iran has that can be used against the United States is much greater than what it has that can be used against the Israeli regime, because its defenses alongside the Persian Gulf are very enormous and diverse: short-range missiles, medium-range missiles, countless drones, submarines. Everything in the Persian Gulf and on the other side of the Persian Gulf, where the U.S. bases exist, can be easily destroyed. This is not a war that the United States can win. We don't want war, and we have never initiated a conflict, neither with the United States nor with the Israeli regime. But if the United States attacks Iran, it will be a fight for our survival, and we will pull no punches," he said.
The U.S. and Iranian delegations held indirect negotiations on Friday, marking a renewed diplomatic effort amid heightened tensions between Tehran and Washington in view of the latter's military buildup in the region.
On Saturday, commenting on the negotiations between the two countries that focused solely on Iran's nuclear issue, Araghchi said they were a good "start," but there is a long way ahead to build trust.
Iran never to negotiate missile program with US: professor
