Andrei Karlov, the Russian Ambassador to Turkey, was fatally shot by Mevlüt Mert Altıntaş on the night of 19 December 2016 at an art exhibition in Ankara, Turkey. The assassination took place after several days of protests in Turkey over Russian involvement in the Syrian Civil War and the battle over Aleppo, though the Russian and Turkish governments had been negotiating a ceasefire.Born in Moscow in 1954, Andrei Gennadyevich Karlov (Russian: Андрей Геннадьевич Карлов) was educated at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations and the Diplomatic Academy. He began his career with the government at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the USSR in 1976. Karlov went on to hold various diplomatic positions at the Russian embassy to North Korea. He had been Russian ambassador to Turkey since July 2013.
The assassin was identified as Mevlüt Mert Altıntaş (24 May 1994 – 19 December 2016), who is described either as an off-duty or former Turkish police officer, having graduated from İzmir Police School in 2014. Some sources report that he had been fired from the police for his alleged involvement in the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt. The New York Times suggested a possible motive is revenge for the Russian Air Force's targeting of rebel-held areas in Aleppo.After shooting Karlov, Altıntaş is reported to have shouted: "Allahu Akbar (God is great). We are those who have sworn allegiance to Muhammad for Jihad as long as we live. Do not forget Aleppo, do not forget Syria. Unless our provinces are safe, you will not taste safety either. Every single person who has a share in this cruelty will pay." After the assassination, Altıntaş was killed by security forces. Karlov was rushed to hospital, but was later pronounced dead.
