Russian Ambassador to Turkey Killed in Shooting

EDITOR'S NOTE: Audio for this report will be available soon.   A gunman shot and killed the Russian ambassador to Turkey on Monday in Ankara. Russian Foreign Ministry official Maria Zakharova confirmed Andrei Karlov had died of his wounds. "Today in Ankara as a result of an attack the Russian ambassador to Turkey Andrei Karlov received wounds that he died from," Zakharova said. "We qualify what happened as a terrorist act." The shooting took place as Karlov spoke at a photo exhibition organized by Russian embassy. The exhibit was called “Russia as Seen by Turks.”   The Associated Press news agency said one of its photographers was there when the shooting took place. The photographer reported that a man shouted "Allahu Akbar'' and fired at least eight shots. "Don't forget Aleppo! Don't forget Syria!" he then shouted in Turkish. "Stand back! Stand back! Only death will take me out of here. Anyone who has a role in this oppression will die one by one.'' A witness told VOA that attendees passed through a metal detector to get into the exhibit. However, they said it did not seem that there was any extra security for the Russian ambassador’s presence. Bahar Bakir, a diplomacy reporter for Haberturk TV, told VOA’s Turkish Service that she and other witnesses “threw ourselves to the ground with the gunshot sounds. "I saw that the gun was aimed at the ceiling and I saw the ambassador on the ground unfortunately." Bakir said she heard 20 to 30 shots as she and others ran from the area. The Turkish news channel NTV reported that police later shot and killed the gunman. Early reports said the attacker may have been a police officer. Ankara's mayor wrote on Twitter that "the attacker is a policeman." Russia's RIA news agency said security around the Russian embassy in Ankara has been increased following the shooting. Statements of condemnation U.S. State Department spokesman John Kirby denounced the attack. "We condemn this act of violence, whatever its source,'' Kirby said.  "Our thoughts and prayers are with him and his family.'' The United Nations made a similar statement. "We condemn the gun attack on the Russian ambassador to Turkey," a U.N. spokesman said. "There can be no justification for an attack on a diplomat or an ambassador." German Interior Minister Thomas De Maiziere said his government is "in solidarity with Turkey in the common fight against terrorism." Career diplomat Karlov, 62, served as Russia's envoy to North Korea in 2001-2006. He later headed the Foreign Ministry's consular department. He became Russia's ambassador to Turkey in 2013. I’m Caty Weaver.   VOANews reported this story. Caty Weaver adapted it for Learning English. ­­­­­­­­­­Ashley Thompson was the editor. ________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   exhibition - n.  a public show of something role - n. a part that someone or something has in a particular activity or situation detector - n. a device that can tell if a substance or object is present  unfortunately - adv. used to say that something bad or unlucky has happened justification - n. an acceptable reason for doing something envoy - n. a person who is sent by one government to represent it in dealing with another government  

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