Police in New York said a man has died from severe burns near the United Nations headquarters, and activists and a media outlet of exiled Tibetans identified him as a Tibetan who set himself on fire in an appeal for independence.
A New York City police department spokesperson said police found the man badly burned after responding to an emergency call made at about 6.30pm ET .
He was taken to Bellevue hospital where he was pronounced dead, police said, adding they were still investigating the death. Police did not name the man and did not provide any potential motive for his action.
Voice of Tibet, a media outlet of exiled Tibetans, said Tibetan activist Lobga Rangzen “self-immolated outside the UN headquarters in New York after a live appeal for Tibetan independence and unity”.
Tbf, he did it outside the UN headquarters, which just happens to be in NY. Presumably he wanted the world’s attention - not just the US’s. And there tend to be a lot of things going on in the world all the time, so there is probably never the “right” time