The Russian ambassador to Turkey Andrey Karlov was shot and killed December 19 in an ambush by a gunman at a photo exhibit in Turkey.
Graphic photos of the scene immediately circulated on social media. According to CNN, Karlov “was giving a speech at the opening ceremony of a photo exhibit when an assailant opened fire.”
Warning: The photos are very graphic. They show the ambassador’s bloody body lying on the ground.
The Daily Beast said the ambassador had died, adding that the shooting occurred in an art gallery in Ankara, Turkey. The BBC said the business suit-wearing gunman yelled, “Don’t forget about Aleppo, don’t forget about Syria,” and “Allahu Akhbar.” The exhibit was called “How Turkey sees Russia,” and was approached by the assassin from behind.
The tragedy of Aleppo has escalated in recent weeks, as human rights organizations accuse Syrian President Bashir Al-Assad and his Russian backers of targeting civilians in air strikes and for mass executions. One woman streamed a video calling the Aleppo situation a “genocide” and tragic photos have shown injured children and wounded civilians. There were also reports of buses, that were supposed to be evacuating people, burning. Aleppo used to be Syria’s main population center and its center of finance. The Syrian civil war stemmed from the Arab Spring uprisings as Assad’s government forces, backed by Russia, fought back against rebel and pro-Democracy forces.
According to the Russian embassy, Karlov, known as “Karlov Andrey Gennadyevich,” was born in 1954 in Moscow. In 1976, he graduated from the Moscow State Institute of International Relations, and in 1992 graduated from Diplomatic Academy. He started his diplomatic career in 1976.
Karlov has held many positions in Russian diplomatic circles. He served at the Russian embassy for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, the embassy to the Republic of Korea, and, since 2013, as ambassador of the Russian Federation to the Republic of Turkey.
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary. He speaks English and Korean, and is married with a son, the bio said.
![](data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,<svg height="161" width="242" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" version="1.1"/>)
Read more about Karlov and Altintas in Spanish at AhoraMismo.com: