Story highlights 80-year-old man treated for non-critical burns after setting himself on fire, police say

He was attending a protest over Japan's treatment of Korean women in World War II

Seoul, South Korea (CNN) An 80-year-old man set himself on fire Wednesday during a protest outside the Japanese Embassy in Seoul.

People rushed to help the unidentified man who was attending a demonstration over Japanese soldiers' use of Korean women as sex slaves in the 1930s and 40s.

"At first, I thought it was the trees that had caught on fire," said Kim Do-yeon, a student who witnessed the incident. "But when I saw it closely, it was the older man who was covered in fire and was burning."

Video from the scene showed people trying to beat the flames out with blankets and then spraying the man with a fire extinguisher. Police and rescue workers later arrived on the scene.

The man is being treated for non-critical burns at Seoul National University Hospital, police said.

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