Russian ambassador to Turkey Andrei Karlov killed in Ankara

A Turkish policeman has shot dead Russia's ambassador to Turkey, Andrei Karlov, apparently in protest at Russia's involvement in Aleppo.

The killer has been identified as Mevlut Mert Aydintas, 22, a member of the Ankara riot police.

The incident happened a day after protests in Turkey over Russian support for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the attack was a provocation aimed at hurting ties with Russia.

He spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin by phone about the attack and, in a video message, said that those who wanted to harm relations between the two countries "would not achieve it".

In televised remarks, Mr Putin said the act was "undoubtedly a provocation aimed at disrupting the normalisation" of bilateral ties and the "peace process in Syria".

According to Russian TV, the ambassador had been attending a photo exhibition called "Russia as seen by Turks".

Video of the event shows Mr Karlov making a speech when gunshots ring out. Eight bullets are said to have been fired.

The camera pulls back to show a smartly dressed gunman, wearing a suit and tie, waving a pistol and shouting in Arabic and Turkish.

He can be heard yelling "Don't forget about Aleppo, don't forget about Syria" and uses the Arabic phrase "Allahu Akbar" (God is great). He is said to have died in a shootout with police soon afterwards.

http://www.bbc.com/news