Man arrested following explosion near US embassy in Beijing

A suspected "firework device" exploded outside the US Embassy in Beijing on Thursday, wounding the 26-year-old male suspect and no one else, police said.

The explosion was caused by a small homemade device wielded by a 26-year-old man who hurt only himself, injuring his hand.

A police statement identified the man only by his surname, Jiang, and said he was from the city of Tongliao in the Chinese region of Inner Mongolia.

The embassy, in a separate statement, described the device as a bomb. It said police had responded but did not offer further details.

The state-run Global Times newspaper said earlier police took away a woman who sprayed herself with gasoline in what was suspected to be a self-immolation attempt outside the embassy. 

Eyewitnesses say an explosion has taken place outside the US embassy in Beijing.  Local media said there was a suspected attempt at self-immolation.

Photos posted on Twitter showed a large amount of smoke and what appeared to be police vehicles surrounding the vast structure in northeastern Beijing on Thursday afternoon.

Chinese police took away a woman who sprayed herself in what was suspected to be a self-immolation attempt outside the embassy, state-run Global Times reported.

Witnesses reported a large security presence, with seven to eight police vehicles near the embassy and the road next to the complex closed off.

China and the US are in the middle of a trade dispute, but America remains a hugely popular destination for travel, education and immigration for Chinese.

Samantha Vargas has more for TRT World, from Beijing.