Russian ambassador Andrey Karlov shot dead in Ankara
Andrey Karlov was speaking at a photo exhibition event in the capital when he was shot by a Turkish special force policeman.
Russia’s ambassador to Turkey was shot dead in front of a crowd at a posh art gallery in the capital Ankara as the angry gunman screamed: “Don’t forget Aleppo. Allahu Akbar! Allahu Akbar!”.
Police later killed the assailant on Monday night, Turkish station NTV reported.
Andrey Karlov, 62, was several minutes into a speech at an embassy-sponsored photo exhibition when a man who stood directly behind him in a dark suit shot the diplomat in the back from close range multiple times.
Russia’s foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova made the announcement of Karlov’s death in a live televised statement.
The assailant was a 22-year-old police special force officer who worked in Turkey’s capital, said Ankara’s mayor, Melih Gokcek.
Turkish police detained six people over the killing, state media said on Tuesday. The state-run Anadolu agency said the attacker’s mother, father, sister and two other relatives were held in the western province of Aydin, while his flatmate in Ankara was also detained.
After the initial shot, the attacker approached Karlov as he lay on the ground and shot him at least one more time at close range, according to an AP photographer at the scene.
He paced angrily around the body, while shouting, and also smashed several of the framed photos on exhibition, but later allowed the stunned guests to leave the venue.
The spectacle of Karlov’s assassination by a member of the Turkish security forces, at a photography exhibition meant to highlight Russian culture, reinforced the sense of unease over the region’s conflict and complex web of alliances and relationships.
Several media outlets reported a gunfight later ensued after Karlov was shot.
Local broadcaster NTV television said at least three people were wounded and were taken to the hospital.
Mayor Gokcek told reporters outside the exhibition centre that the “heinous” attack was aimed at disrupting newly re-established relations between Turkey and Russia.
Presidents Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke by phone about Monday’s attack. “On behalf of my country and my people I once again extend my condolences to Russian President Vladimir Putin and the friendly Russian people,” said Erdogan.
Putin promised a response to the assassination. “The crime that has been committed is undoubtedly a provocation aimed at derailing the ties between Russia and Turkey, as well as the peace process in Syria,” said Putin from Moscow. “There is only one possible response to this – the strengthening of the fight against terror, and the bandits will feel it themselves.”
Russia and Turkey have co-sponsored the evacuation of civilians and rebels from Aleppo and discussed the prospect of organising a new round of peace talks in Kazakhstan’s capital, Astana.
‘Don’t forget Aleppo’
The assailant referred to the situation in Aleppo after he shot the ambassador in the back. “Don’t forget Aleppo, don’t forget Syria,” the attacker said in Turkish, after gunning down the ambassador, as seen in a video shared by Turkish media from the scene. “Whoever took part in this cruelty will pay the price, one by one … Only death will take me from here,” the man said while holding a pistol. He then continued in Arabic, saying: “We are the descendants of those who supported the Prophet Muhammad, for jihad.”
Berlin Christmas market: 12 dead, 48 hospitalized in truck crash
A tractor trailer barreled into a crowded Christmas market in Berlin on Monday night, killing 12 people and injuring 48 others. Witnesses said shoppers screamed and dropped packages and glasses of mulled wine as the truck plowed into the market.
A Pakistani asylum seeker detained by police may not have been the driver, German authorities said Tuesday, leading to fears that the attacker could still be at large.
Berlin Police President Klaus Kandt said that officials could not be certain that the man in custody — who was picked up about a mile away from where 12 people were killed and 48 others injured — was responsible for the attack on Monday evening.
German authorities are investigating the incident as a terror attack.
The man was “probably from Pakistan,” De Maiziere said, adding he had entered the country on December 31, 2015, and that his application for asylum had stalled.
Germany Chancellor Angela Merkel has said Tuesday’s Berlin Christmas market incident was a “terrorist act”.
Angela Merkel said on Tuesday, a day after the event in the German capital, that it was “a very difficult day for Germany. We have to assume that this was a terrorist attack,” Merkel said.
Merkel added it would be “particularly sickening” if the attacker was in fact a refugee. The detained man arrived in Germany in February, was known to police for minor criminal offences, and used several names, a police source said. He was staying at a refugee hostel.
The lorry struck the popular Christmas market outside the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church late on Monday as tourists and locals enjoyed a traditional pre-Christmas evening near Berlin’s Zoo station. Dozens of people were wounded.
The interior ministry said Christmas markets in Berlin will remain closed on Tuesday out of respect for the victims.
Last update: Police hunt Tunisian suspect after finding ID papers in truck
Police are searching for a Tunisian man in his early 20s in connection with the Berlin Christmas market attack, a German security official told CNN on Wednesday.
The suspect’s identity papers were found inside the cabin of the truck used in Monday’s attack, which left 12 people dead and 48 injured, the official said. The man was born in 1992, he said.
An urgent manhunt is underway for the suspect, who is potentially armed and dangerous, before he can strike again, CNN terrorism analyst Paul Cruickshank said.
German Interior Minister Thomas de Maizière confirmed that a new suspect was being sought in connection with the attack but declined to confirm his identity. He told reporters a manhunt for the suspect had been underway in Germany and across Europe since midnight.
The attack suspect was already arrested in Germany in August for forged documents but was released by judge without a specific reason.
Three people wounded in Zurich Islamic center shooting
A gunman walked into an Islamic center in central Zurich and shot three men, police in the Swiss city said Monday. The man, decked out in dark clothing, opened fire on a group of worshipers standing inside a prayer room at about 5:30 p.m., police said, citing eyewitnesses. The shots injured the men, some seriously, Zurich police said in a news release.
The gunman fled and police blocked off the area, not far from the central train station. Witnesses said the shooter, who is still being sought, appeared to be about 30 years of age and was wearing a dark wool cap. The victims are aged 30, 35 and 56.
Police didn’t disclose any potential motive.
US President-elect Donald Trump tweeted about the attack, lumping it in with two other incidents occurring on the same day: the truck crash in Berlin and the assassination of the Russian ambassador to Turkey in Ankara. Trump called all three terror attacks.