Car Crash at Beijing’s Tiananmen Square Kills 5 (VIDEO)

Oct 28, 2013 10:05 AM EDT | Matt Mercuro

Five people were killed and dozens injured on today, Oct. 28, when a car drove into pedestrians and caught fire in Beijing's Tiananmen Square.

The incident took place at the site of 1989 pro-democracy protests suppressed by the military, according to Reuters.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said she didn't know the specifics of the case and couldn't confirm, nor deny, that the incident was an act of terrorism.

Police said that the car swerved off the road at the north of the square, which is a major tourist attraction. The car then crossed the barriers and caught fire, according to Reuters.

Major party and government events are held near the adjacent Great Hall of the People, where a national women's congress was taking place at the time of the incident.

The three people inside the car were killed. Of the 38 injured at the scene, three were tourists from the Philippines and one was from Japan.

The crash took place near the front of the main entrance of the Forbidden City, where a huge portrait of the founder of Communist China, Mao Zedong, hangs.

An official investigation is underway, according to Xinhua, the state news agency.

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