A Turkish policeman crying 'Aleppo' and 'Allahu Akbar' shot dead Russia's ambassador to Turkey at an art exhibition in Ankara on Monday, in what Moscow branded a 'terrorist act' that would be punished.
Andrei Karlov died of his wounds after the shooting, which occurred on the eve of a key meeting between the Russian, Turkish and Iranian foreign ministers on the Syria conflict.
Dramatic television footage showed the moment the veteran diplomat was shot as he opened a show of Russian photographs at the Ankara exhibition hall.
Images showed the ambassador standing up to speak at a lectern, before stumbling and crashing to the ground, lying flat on his back as the attacker -- dressed in a dark suit, white shirt and tie -- brandishes his gun at terrified onlookers.
The man shouts "Allahu Akbar" ("God is greatest") and then talks about pledging allegiance to jihad in Arabic, the images showed.
Switching to Turkish, he then says: "Don't forget about Syria, don't forget about Aleppo. All those who participate in this tyranny will be held accountable".
The state-run Anadolu news agency said the gunman had been "neutralised" in a police operation inside the hall after 15 minutes of clashes.
Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu identified the attacker as Mevlut Mert Altintas, 22, who had worked in the Ankara anti-riot police for the last two-and-a-half years.
"Today in Ankara as a result of an attack the Russian ambassador to Turkey Andrei Karlov received wounds that he died from," Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in televised comments.
"We qualify what happened as a terrorist act," she added. "The murderers will be punished."
"Today this issue will be raised at the UN Security Council. Terrorism will not win out."
Ban Ki-moon has condemned the Russian envoy's murder as a "senseless act of terror".
The Australian government also condemned the deadly attack on the Russian ambassador to Turkey.
"Aust govt condemns shocking attack on Russian Ambassador in Turkey - I extend my condolences to his family, loved ones & Russian people," Foreign Minister Julie Bishop tweeted on Tuesday.
The Ankara mayor has confirmed the gunman was a 22-year-old police officer.
'Baying for blood'
The incident came after days of protests in Turkey over Russia's role in Syria, although Moscow and Ankara are now working closely together to evacuate citizens from the battered city of Aleppo.
The United States condemned the attack, while British ambassador Richard Moore paid tribute to a "quietly spoken, hospitable professional."
Erdogan phoned Putin to brief him about the attack, presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said.
James Nixey, head of the Russia and Eurasia programme at Chatham House think tank in London, said Moscow will use the attack to step up actions in what the Kremlin sees as a "war on terror".
"My sense it that the Russians won't blame the Turks for this but will seek to capitalise on it for wider gains," he said.
"Clearly the Russian military will be baying for blood, they'll want revenge."
