Updated | Russian ambassador shot dead in Turkey

A Turkish policeman was reported to have shot dead Russia’s ambassador to Turkey on Monday, Andrei Karlov, apparently in protest at Russia’s involvement in Aleppo.

Several other people were also injured in the attack, a day after protests in Turkey over Russian support for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

The killer, who was in civilian clothes, opened fire at point blank range as Karlov made a speech.

He is said to have died in a shootout with police soon afterwards.

Karlov, 62, was rushed to hospital, reports said, but his death was later confirmed by the Russian foreign ministry.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has spoken to Russian President Vladimir Putin by phone about the attack.

Speaking outside the hospital where Karlov was taken, Ankara’s Mayor, Melih Gokcek, said the killing was intended to ruin his country’s relations with Russia.

While there were protests in recent days about the situation in Aleppo, on a political level the Turkish and Russian governments have been co-operating in the ceasefire operation.

Before the attack happened, a meeting of the Russian, Turkish and Iranian foreign ministers had been planned in Moscow for Tuesday.

According to Russian TV, the ambassador had been attending a photo exhibition called “Russia as seen by Turks”.

Video of the event shows Karlov making a speech when gunshots ring out. Eight bullets are said to have been fired.

The camera pulls back to show a smartly dressed gunman, wearing a suit and tie, waving a pistol and shouting in Arabic and Turkish.

He can be heard yelling “Don’t forget about Aleppo, don’t forget about Syria” and uses the Arabic phrase “Allahu Akbar” (God is great).

Turkish officials later identified him as a member of the Ankara riot police, aged 22.