TURKEY: Russian Ambassador Assassinated By Lone Gunman In “Revenge” For Atrocities In Aleppo

The New York Times reports:

A lone gunman shot Russia’s ambassador to Turkey and at least three others Monday evening at an art center in Ankara, the Turkish capital. Russia’s Foreign Ministry said the envoy had died in a terrorist attack.

The envoy, Andrey G. Karlov, was shot from behind while speaking at an exhibition, according to multiple accounts including from The Associated Press, which cited one of its photographers, who was at the scene, the Contemporary Arts Center in the Cankaya area of Ankara.

Others said the ambassador immediately fell to the floor and that the gunman was killed after a shootout with Turkish Special Forces police. Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, told the Rossiya 24 news channel that Mr. Karlov had died of his wounds in what she described as a terror attack.

The attack came amid protests in Turkey over Russia’s role in the Syria war. The Russian and Turkish governments, while backing different sides in the conflict, have been collaborating in efforts to evacuate civilians from the ravaged city of Aleppo.

Some reports say the gunman was a Turkish police officer. According to CNN, he was shouting cries of “revenge” in the name of those killed in Aleppo.