Five people have died and 38 people injured after a vehicle crashed into a crowd in front of the Tian'anmen Rostrum in Tian'anmen square. Several tourists and policemen were also injured in the accident.

Photos captured by passers-by. Flames and thick smoke in the very heart of the Chinese capital.

Authorities cleared Tiananmen Square in Central Beijing during lunchtime, after a jeep crashed into the crowd in front of the Tian'anmen Rostrum and caught on fire. The crash killed the driver and two passengers, and injured tourists and security officers.

The first official confirmation of the incident came from the official microblog of the Beijing police.

According to authorities, the jeep first turned onto Chang'an Avenue from the south end of Nan Chizi street. It then ran into a guardrail of the Golden Water Bridge before catching on fire.

Police then evacuated the square, a popular tourist attraction, as emergency personnel responded to the scene.

Chang'an Avenue, the main road through the square, was briefly closed, and Beijing's subway authorities closed off its Tiananmen East station at the request of police.

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