Nine people were killed when a car crashed into pedestrians near a busy intersection in central Seoul on Monday, officials said.

       Four others were injured in the incident in front of city hall, but their wounds were not life-threatening, said Kim Chun-soo, a senior fire department official.

       The driver of the car claimed that he lost control of it when it suddenly accelerated, local news media reported. Kim Seong-hak, a public safety official at the Jung-gu district in central Seoul, said the authorities could not immediately confirm the reports, adding that the police were investigating the driver.

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