Fire near Tehran's Hotel Esteghlal sends smoke over northern capital

A building next to Tehran's Hotel Esteghlal caught fire on Monday, sending thick smoke over the northern part of Iran's capital.

AFP journalists saw black and white columns of smoke around the tall hotel, with flames visible in the nearby building from surrounding rooftops.

A state television correspondent at the scene said guests inside the hotel were being evacuated for safety. State television footage showed firetrucks at the site as onlookers watched efforts to bring the fire under control.

There were no immediate reports of casualties. It was not immediately clear what kind of building had caught fire.

State news agency IRNA said the Hotel Esteghlal, formerly the Royal Hilton, was built in the 1960s.