Car rams Russian Embassy gate in Romania, driver dead

BUCHAREST, Romania — A car crashed into the gate of the Russian Embassy in the Romanian capital early Wednesday, bursting into flames and killing the driver, police said.

The sedan rammed into the gate at about 6 am Wednesday but did not enter the Bucharest embassy compound.

Video of the aftermath showed the car engulfed in flames as security personnel ran through the area.

According to police, firefighters who arrived at the scene were able to put the fire out but the driver died at the scene.

There was no immediate information on a possible motive or other details.

In a statement after the incident, the Russian embassy expressed condolences to the family of the driver.

"We must state with regret that whatever the motives of the driver," the statement read. "There is no doubt that he committed this act under the influence of an explosion of anti-Russian hysteria in connection with a staged provocation in the city of Bucha."

The embassy said no employees were injured.

Agencies via Xinhua