Off-Duty Turkish Cop Shoots Russian Ambassador Dead in Ankara
Russian president Putin said the killing of the ambassador was a provocation to try to spoil Russia-Turkey ties.
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The Russian ambassador to Ankara was shot in an attack at an art gallery in the Turkish capital on Monday and the Russian RIA news agency said he had succumbed to his wounds.
The Anadolu news agency said the gunman had been “neutralised” soon after the attack, which appeared to mark one of the most serious spillovers of the Syria conflict in Turkey. Relations between Moscow and Ankara have long been fraught over the conflict, the two supporting opposing sides.
The gunman was an off-duty police officer who worked in the Turkish capital, two security sources told Reuters. He has been identified as Mert Altintas, member of the special ops unit in Ankara.
Video footage of the attack showed the assailant in black suit, standing over the fallen diplomat with gun in hand, shouting, “Don’t forget Aleppo, don’t forget Syria.” Read the full story here.
Video Editor: Ashutosh Bhardwaj
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