Monday, December 19, 2016

Russian ambassador to Turkey dies after gun attack

Russian ambassador to Turkey
dies after gun attack

Ankara: The Russian ambassador to Turkey has died after being shot by a gunman in Ankara on Monday, 19th December 2016, where he was attending a photo exhibition, the Russian Foreign Ministry has confirmed.

The assault on the Russian ambassador in Turkey is an “act of terrorism,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said on Monday evening.

“An unknown person opened fire during a public event in Ankara. As a result, the Russian ambassador to Turkey received a gunshot wound,” Zakharova told journalists earlier.

The ambassador, Andrey Karlov, was injured after he was about to deliver a speech on the opening of the exhibition “Russia in the eyes of Turks.”
Photos purportedly showing the perpetrator bearing a firearm are now increasingly circulating on social media. Users are also posting pictures which they say show the Russian ambassador lying on the ground after having been shot.

The perpetrator, who was wearing a suit and a tie, shouted ‘Allahu Akbar’ (‘God is great’ in Arabic) during the attack, AP reports, citing their own photographer.

The attacker also said several words in Russian, according to the news agency, and damaged several of the photos at the expo.

Turkish NTV broadcaster says that three other people were also injured in the attack on the ambassador.

The attacker has been killed by Turkish Special Forces, Turkish Anadolu news agency reports. Russian Interfax, citing a source in the Turkish military, also confirms that the gunman was neutralized.

Hurriyet newspaper, citing their own reporter, says that the perpetrator also fired warning shots in the air before targeting Karlov.

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