Karlov was shot in the back by a gunman who screamed, "Don't forget Aleppo! Don't forget Syria!" Photo / AP
Both Turkish and Russian officials labelled the assassination of Andrey Karlov, Moscow's envoy to Turkey, in Ankara as a "terrorist" attack.
Karlov was shot in the back by a gunman who screamed, "Don't forget Aleppo! Don't forget Syria!"
Russian President Vladimir Putin said the attack was "a provocation" that wouldn't
have an impact on the current thaw in relations between Moscow and Ankara, which were plunged into crisis last year as the two countries took differing sides in Syria's civil war.
Russia's intervention on behalf of the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad infuriated Turkey and its President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who was one of the first world leaders to call for Assad's departure. In the months since, Turkey had to calibrate its position as the Assad regime dug in and Syrian Kurdish factions galvanised support among Turkey's restless Kurdish minority. Turkey has worked with Russia to find a solution for civilians trapped in Aleppo.
That doesn't mean all Turks accept Russia's role in a conflict that rages on their doorstep. Protests were held outside Russian diplomatic buildings in Istanbul and Ankara. At the scene of Karlov's murder, before he himself was killed by Turkish security personnel, the shooter declared his actions were retribution for Russia's role in bombing rebel-held areas of Aleppo.
