A 52-year-old man dies after self-immolating near the United Nations headquarters in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, police and media reports say. According to the New York Police Department, officers respond to a 911 call around 6:30 p.m. and find the man with severe burns. He is taken to Bellevue Hospital and later pronounced dead. Police say an investigation is under way and they do not publicly comment on what prompted the self-immolation. The man’s name had not been released by police immediately, pending notification of family.

Multiple outlets citing activists and exiled Tibetan sources identify the man as Logba (or Lobga/Palden Lobsang in some reports) Rangzen, a pro-Tibet activist. Footage circulated online shows the man carrying a Tibetan flag near East 43rd Street and First Avenue and planting a flag on the sidewalk before setting himself on fire, according to those sources. Voice of Tibet and other reporting attribute the act to a live appeal for Tibetan independence and unity. A UN spokesperson says the incident occurs after scheduled meetings end for the day.