Who is Andrey Karlov?

Born in Moscow in 1954, Karlov Andrey Gennadyevich 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.

He went on to hold various diplomatic positions at the Russian embassy to North Korea.

Mr Karlov has been Russian ambassador to Turkey since July 2013.